RESET and SAVE
by Shonex
Summary: The more you RESET, the more the world changes. The more the world changes, the worse things can get. What happens if enough is enough and the world can't take the constant pressure. Anna Sathe, a young girl, stumbles upon the Underground, and sets out on a quest to reach her family. Or, has she already found her family where it is in the Underground? TRUE PACIFIST SPOILERS!
1. Welcome to the UNDERGROUND

**My first Undertale fanfiction. I'm quite proud of myself. This is going to be a bit of a spoiler for the pacifist run so if you haven't played it yourself, please do yourself a favor and play this amazing game. It's something that needs to be watch unspoiled. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

My name is Anna Sathe. My last name is pronounced "say the". I'm a 9 year old girl that really hasn't done much around my home on the surface world. It was a bit boring up there and not much was going on. My 10-year-old brother, Charles, was dealing with a serious bullying problem and I'm struggling to fit in with everyone else at school. I was always known as the quiet child that didn't really speak too much. I was an introvert at best, and it was for that reason people disliked me. They always figured that I thought myself too great to associate with anyone. That isn't true at all, I just haven't been the "social butterfly" as of late. The times I did speak, my voice was low and I was too afraid to complete a sentence. It's why I'm mostly only able to convey words through writing. It's why I have a diary.

It isn't all bad, however. I've found playing a clarinet to be my daily hobby and my skills are improving slowly. I absolutely excel in my English class and I'm learning to speak different languages fluently. My father, Gerald, is teaching me Italian and Spanish. My brother is one of the best when it comes to history. He loves hearing about our culture here on Earth. One of his favorite stories, however, is the tale of the monsters that are said to live under our world. I claim it to be a bunch of hogwash simply because I find it unbelievable. But, perhaps, that would explain why people refuse to go anywhere near Mount Ebott. They say that if you go up there, you won't return. Seven children have been lost already and another child has just gone missing.

What was their name again? It started with an 'f'. It was apparent that the kid wasn't very happy with their life and decided to run away to end it all. That isn't what was directly said, but people sure believe that to be the case. I find it upsetting that the kid has dealt with so many problems. They practically had to raise themselves because their parents wouldn't pay them any mind. One day, their parents had left and never came back. Maybe that's why they left our town.

We were moving today. We were leaving the town. Good riddance! I hated the fifth-graders at my school. They were rude and bossy. They were the reason my bus was so messy when I got onto it. They were the reason why my teachers turn a blind eye to problems they create. They were the reason my brother was being bullied. I only saw the house we were going to get in a picture, but it's a 2 story house. Naturally, it can fit me, my dad, and my brother. Hopefully it'll turn out to be better than the tiny house we were moving out of.

-88-

While I'm at it, I suppose I should explain what I look like. I was tan-skinned and had my red hair tied into cornrows. My face had freckles on each cheek rosy-red cheek. I wore a white sweater with a music note on it and a blue skirt that went down to my ankles. I wore black checkered loafers. My clarinet was always inside of its blue case that was strapped to my back. Along with that was my diary which I always held clipped onto my left hip. My brother was also tanned skin with messy red hair. He wears a camouflage tank top and brown shorts. He covers his feet with white shoes. My dad also had red hair but also a beard that circled his mouth and went off of his face sort of like a goatee. He has a large build and has the capability of lifting a king-sized bed by himself. His friends call him "Gerald the Strongman". He's often seen in a white tank top and black pants. He has hairy arms and has a ring on his left hand. I was a lefty, my brother was right-handed, and my dad was right-handed.

-88-

Luck turned out to be in my favor. There were enough rooms for us all so that meant I didn't have to share a room with my brother anymore. While the movers were placing our furniture into the house. Dad, my brother, and I all went outside for some fresh air.

"Father, do you mind if I go exploring?" I ask Dad.

"Not at all, Anna, but don't go fa- AGH!" Dad is hit with a red ball and falls over onto the ground.

"Whoops! Sorry, Dad!" Charles says, trying to stop himself from giggling.

"I'm not going down that easily!" Dad says.

Father gets up and tackles Charles to the ground. They roll around and laugh for a bit. I shake my head, laughing myself, and begin to head off.

The area was covered with trees. I struggle to see the morning sun through them until I reached a clearing later. I walk out into it and see a cliff. I suddenly realized where I was.

Mount Ebott.

The shocking thing was that it wasn't that far from where I was. I'm surprised nobody said anything about this area being so close to our new home. I got excited and began to scale the mountain. My hair hangs loosely in the wind as I run faster up towards the top and look over the edge. It seemed to be a canyon down below where I was. I could see all sorts of rocks and jewels lying about. I take out my diary to write down some of the things I saw when I heard something. Looking behind me, I stare about the top of the mountain before deciding to head back home.

As I pass by, a part of the mountain caves in and I fall through. I scream at the top of my lungs as I'm heading towards the bottom of, well, something really quickly. I close my eyes and brace myself for a very rough landing.

...

...?

It never came.

I open my eyes and see that I've safely landed on a flower bed. I hurriedly get up and dust myself off. My diary went missing. I turn to my side and see my clarinet case a distance away from me. Luckily that was still-

...oh no...

Opening it up, my mouth drops open in fear,

It was broken.

So much for a safe landing...Now is the time to get out of here! I look about the room I was in. It was dark besides light coming from around a corner. I instinctively head in that direction. Heading upwards, I see another clearing where light is pouring in. Grass was forming around that spot, but everywhere else in the room was dark. I close my eyes and try to gather my thoughts before a voice calls out to me.

"Howdy! I'm FLOWEY," It says,"FLOWEY the FLOWER!"

I look up and see a small yellow flower staring straight at me. I take this small opportunity to question how on Earth a flower could be speaking to me at this very moment. It goes against everything I've-

Oh...

This thing is one of those monsters I've learned about in school, huh? I never imagined that they'd be real at all! Better be on my toes then. Who knows what it could do.

"Hmm...You're new to the UNDERGROUND, aren'tcha?

The UNDERGROUND? Is that what this place is? It's certainly dark out. I forgot to bring a match, lighter, or lantern if I knew this would be happening.

"Golly, you must be so confused," Flowey speaks,"Someone ought to teach you how things work around here!"

I begin to scan the place for any sign of an exit. There's one right behind him and there's the place I just came from. I'm tempted to just run past the thing, but I'm a bit worried about what it might do to me.

"I guess little old me will have to do," He says, smiling creepily,"Ready? Here we go!"

Suddenly a light surrounds me and a heart can be seen from within myself. I look at it and watch as it radiates a maroon coloring. I raise my eyebrows at the sight and turn my eyes back to the talking flower.

"See that heart?," Flowey says,"That is your SOUL, the very culmination of your being!"

So this thing is what's keeping me in reality? Duly noted.

"Your SOUL starts off weak, but can grow strong if you gain a lot of LV," He explains.

LV? This better not be "level" otherwise I'm asleep and I've fallen into my brother's World of Warcraft universe. Better get the sword because I'm going grinding for items!

"What's LV stand for?" Flowey asks, smiling,"Why, LOVE, of course!"

Yep this is gonna be one swell of- oh wait LOVE? Well, I am contented now.

"You want some LOVE, don't you?"He asks.

I shake my head 'no'. Not from something like you. You're waaaaay to strange for my taste.

"Oh, don't be like that," Flowey insists,"Don't worry, I'll share some with you,"

It then promptly winks and sticks out its tongue in a sort of silly way. A little star appeared from his closed eye when he winked. Suddenly, small, white, oval-shaped things appeared from him.

"Down here, LOVE, is shared through little white...'friendliness pellets'," He says, glancing away and then looking at me.

You've got to be kidding me. Yeah this guy is definitely not lying. There's no way in heck he's lying. I guess I should just stroll on over to the "friendliness pellets" and give them a hug. Hey pellets? TAKE ME ALREADY!

"Are you ready?"He asks

NO! NONONONONONO!

"Move around! Get as many as you can!"Flowey encourages.

I start to move around, but I'm sort of trapped. I can't leave the area and the pellets are closing in. I decide to slip on by them instead of getting directly hit. He gives me a look that would say "Come on, now, really?". He's still holding that grin, but it's significantly more different looking combined with the look of his eyes.

"Hey buddy, you missed them," Sherlock says.

That was the idea.

"Let's try that again, okay?" Flowey says, more pellets appearing.

I side-step them again.

'Screw you, midget flower' I think, smirking.

Flowey now looks visibly annoyed with me. Great, now if he could just leave me alone. I don't want his friendliness pellets. It sounds disturbing.

"Is this a joke? Are you braindead?"

How rude of him. And I was just starting to accept the pellet offer. Too bad, you choose me or you lose me. Suddenly, a white box started to fill with the words he was saying.

"RUN. INTO. THE. BULLETS!" He yells.

AHA! I KNEW IT! But I can celebrate later, I've gotta get rid of this guy first.

Flowey glances at the box in fright before it hurriedly switches to friendliness pellets. The pellets close in and I side-step them easily. Flowey's face freezes before swapping to something that resembled a skull. His sockets had white dots on them and his teeth were sharp. It was so grotesque I did a double take.

"You know what's going on here, don't you?" He hisses.

Pretty much, yeah. The friendliness pellet's thing...not working, I'm sorry.

"You just wanted to see me suffer," Flowey says.

NOW we're getting somewhere.

My smug look was cut short as he shortens my range of movement and creates a giant circle around me.

"Die," It says with a chilling grin.

He started to laugh, it was absolutely horrific. The walls were closing in and I had to listen to that every second. Right before I was hit though, the pellets are blocked by flames. A fireball launches Flowey away and a goat-like figure walks up to me.

"What a terrible creature," it says,"Torturing such a poor, innocent youth,"

It was apparently a woman. Her voice made it obvious and her clothing helped that fact. She had a strange design on it. Three triangles and a ball with wings? Okay, rule number one, question absolutely nothing. Resist the urge, just do it.

"Do not be afraid, my child," She says,"I am Toriel, caretaker of the RUINS,"

So I'm in the RUINS right now, huh? That would explain the cobwebs and spiders running amok in this dark room.

"I pass through this place every day to see if anyone has fallen down,"

That's right, I'm not the only one. That's strangely a comforting thought. It means other people understand what I'm going through right now.

"You are the second human to come here in a long time,"

Wait...second? Someone was here...oh. That kid disappeared a while ago. That must be him she's talking about. It would make sense.

"Come! I will guide you through the catacombs," She says, taking my hand and walking towards an arched door.

"This way,"

For the first time in a while, things were finally starting to look a bit better.

* * *

 **Well that certainly went well. I did my best to have everyone match their dialogue within the game. I tweaked a few things to keep the plot of the story. Don't worry, Frisk is coming in soon, trust me. When he does, he'll be just as awesome as always. Be sure to review this story and give your feedback on this chapter. Every word counts.**


	2. Adventure's Beginning

**Attention all readers, this is going to be a long chapter. Grab your popcorn, pull up a chair, and get ready to read. Frisk will be introduced in this chapter, and will be kept gender-neutral like in the game. Also, spoilers for the true-pacifist route. Please play the game if you haven't before reading this.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Undertale, I only own my OCs.**

* * *

The goat creature named Toriel leads me to another room with two staircases that lead up to a single platform. She lets go of my hand and walks up onto the platform and waits for me. I took this as her letting me get a clear view of the room, which I took, gratefully. It was much brighter in this room than the last. I could see a square made out of reddish-orange leaves. The floor was purple.

I walk between the two stairs and sit town. Taking out my journal, I write down what's happened so far and close it. My journal glows a light before dimming and returning to normal. Well then, this place is just full of odd things isn't it. At least Toriel seems friendly enough. I'll stick with her for the time being. I get up and follow Toriel to the next room.

This next room was smaller than the last and contained six buttons on the ground. At the end of the room, a switch directly in front of the buttons.

"Welcome to your new home, innocent one," Toriel says.

Wait...new home? She's planning on me staying in this place? Don't get me wrong, I like being out of that dark room and around someone I can finally trust, but in no way can I stay here. However, I stayed quiet and said nothing.

"Allow me to educate you in the operation of the RUINS," she says.

Toriel presses four of the six buttons and flips the switch. The door opens in response to her input. It was a puzzle. However, I can't see how anyone would've figured that out.

"The RUINS are full of puzzles," Toriel explains,"Ancient fusions between diversions and doorkeys. One must solve them to pass from room to room. Please adjust yourself to the sight of them.

So...this won't be the only one I'll see. Toriel walks to the next room as I notice a sign on the wall. Walking up to it, it reads,"Only the fearless may proceed. Brave ones, foolish ones. Both walk not the middle road," I don't quite understand the message, but it makes sense to me. Not wanting to keep Toriel waiting, I make haste to the next room.

This next room was much longer than the last one. Water was running straight through it in some spots. Because of this, there were bridges across them. A sign was directly in front of where I walked in.

"To make progress here, you will need to trigger several switches," Toriel explains,"Do not worry, I have labelled the ones that you need to flip,"

Me, wanting to express my gratitude, finally says something,"Thank you, Toriel,"

Toriel's eyes widened a small bit in surprise. I smile at her and watch as she walks down the room. I look at the sign and read it over.

'Press [Z] to read signs,'

What in the...

I notice another sign behind this one. It was hanging on the wall. I walk up to read it.

'Stay on the path'

My bad!

I walk past the bridge, staying on the path, and see a switch with yellow arrows pointing towards it. Words that were next to it read,"Please press this switch-Toriel,"

Complying, I pressed the switch and follow Toriel over the next bridge. There were two switches on the wall. One of them was labelled. So I walked up to the labelled switch and pressed it. The spikes that blocked our path to the next room disappeared.

"Splendid! I am proud of you, little one," Toriel praises,"Let us move to the next room,"

"What about this other one?" I ask, pointing towards the other switch.

"That will cause the barrier to appear once more, hurry on now," she explains.

I walk to the next room with Toriel and she stands near the opening. Looking down at me, she looks me over a small bit. This next room was smaller than the last and had a dummy sitting off to the side.

"As a human living in the UNDERGROUND, monsters may attack you," Toriel says,"You will need to be prepared for this situation,"

Thanks for the warning. She really seems to care about my well being. Sort of reminds me of Dad. Speaking of which, he must be worried sick about where I am. No worries, once I am out of the RUINS, I can head back to my father.

"However, worry not!" Toriel reassures,"The process is simple. When you encounter a monster, you will enter a FIGHT,"

Is that what happened with that flower back there? It sure was frightening. If this is as easy as she says, then I have nothing more to worry about.

"When you are in a FIGHT, strike up a friendly conversation," she explains,"Stall for time. I will come to resolve the conflict,"

How nice of her, although...what if she doesn't come? It'll just be easier to rid myself of the thing. But if she wants me to not hurt anyone, I will comply.

"Practice talking to the dummy," Toriel says, pointing towards the dummy.

I walk up to the dummy and my heart, er...SOUL, reveals itself from within me again. My range of movement is contained once more, and four words showed up around me.

FIGHT, ACT, ITEM, and MERCY. These allowed me to behave the way I do in battle apparently. It was nice to know that as long as I have these options, I'm safe.

"Um...so, how long have you been in this room? It's awfully quiet in here," I ask.

...

...?

Nothing, like I expected, but Toriel seems pleased with my actions. My SOUL disappears and my range of motion is back.

"Ah, very good!"She says,"You are very good!"

In the next room, this one is longer than the last one. This room was divided into two parts that were separated by walls.

"In this room, there is another puzzle,"Toriel explains,"I wonder if you can solve it,"

I've done moderately well, I'm sure I can handle this.

'And if I can't, you can help me, right? Yeah, I'll be fine as long as I stick with you,' I think to myself.

I follow behind Toriel and continue into the second part of the room. As I'm walking I hear words from behind me.

"You think that's another one of them?"

"Sure seems like a human,"

"Well, who should we send after it?"

"Him, that one,"

"Alright then,"

I try my best to ignore the words and continue on. Not much later, my SOUL appears from within me and I'm thrust into a FIGHT. I look around frantically as to what attacked me before my eyes rested on a small being. It resembled a frog. Well, I have no idea why I was afraid.

I gather my thoughts and then speak.

"Might I say, what a defining figure you have,"

It didn't seem to understand my words, but it looked flattered anyway. Not much later, Toriel appears and glares at the frog thing. The frog looks back at her and slowly backs away. This causes my SOUL to disappear and me to leave the FIGHT. As I continue to follow Toriel, I read another sign.

"The western room is the eastern room's blueprint,"

What in the world could that mean? Might it have something to do with the way I progressed through it? I take my attention away from the sign and follow Toriel. We arrive at another room that was absolutely littered with spikes. I look at Toriel, the room, and then where I came from. I was about to head in that direction before Toriel spoke up.

"This is the puzzle, but...," She starts,"Here, take my hand for a moment,"

I'm lead through the spikes, tightly clasping onto Toriel's hand. The path she chooses is apparently the safe path. Every step she would take would cause the spikes to disappear and allow her safe passage. I'm slightly relieved that she knows the puzzle. At the end of the room, Toriel speaks to me.

"Puzzles seem a little too dangerous for now,"

A little? The place was filled to the brim with spikes! That is anything but little! Oh well...

The next room was a VERY long hallway that had absolutely nothing in it besides the pillar at the end.

"You have done excellently thus far, my child," Toriel says,"However...I have a difficult request to ask of you,"

Which would be?

"I would like you to walk to the end of the room by yourself," She explains.

That would sound rude to me had I not been in the UNDERGROUND. Down here, however, I'm dependent on Toriel to protect me. This was a difficult task, not because of what she asked of me, but gathering the courage, the determination, to do it.

"Forgive me for this," She pleads, quickly moving to the end of the room.

I close my eyes and think to myself,'This is easy, I can do this'.

I begin to move to the end of the room. I take this small moment to reflect on what happened. I broke my clarinet, which was now in its case, strapped to my back. I fought a flower, strangely enough. Finally, I met a goat creature who seems to really care about me.

...Yep, nothing strange about anything today. Speaking of which, what time is it, anyway? It must be late now, since it was afternoon when my family had moved.

When I reach the end of the room, Toriel appears from behind a pillar, happy that I passed her expectations.

"Greetings, my child,"She says,"Do not worry, I did not leave you,"

She directs to the pillar in the room,"I was merely behind this pillar the whole time. Thank you for trusting me,"

"However, there was an important reason for this exercise...to test your independence,"

That makes more sense when it's explained to me. She seems to have the answers for the questions I give her.

"I must attend to some business, and you must stay alone for a while. Please remain here. It's dangerous to explore by yourself,"Toriel explains,"I have an idea, I will give you a CELL PHONE,"

"If you have a need for anything, just call. Be good, alright?" She asks.

"Okay, Toriel" I respond.

She promptly leaves the room and I'm left all by my lonesome. I think about what I could do in this room until she gets back. I come up with nothing and start thinking about the possibility of monsters appearing...yeah...I'm definitely not staying around for that to happen. Time to start moving!

-88-

After working my way through the puzzles, not picking on a Loox, wiggling my hips to a Moldsmal, and trying to console a Whimsun, I begin to write down the enemies and places I've seen in my diary. I've met a Migosp and a ghost named Nabstablook. I've even talked to a vegetable! There are so many things I can do down here that were impossible above ground.

I've also found this white faded ribbon. I tied all of the cornrows in my hair into this ribbon. So now I had a white bow in my hair. There were also these webs that would give me spider donuts if i left about 7g in there. Speaking of money, I've grabbed this little sack I found along the way. Maybe it was dropped by one of the children that went through here. I should return it to them if I ever come across them.

All the enemies I've come across had some issue for me to solve with them. They all seem friendly enough at least, and they're all negotiable. Maybe their assumptions about humans threw them off when they came across me. I shouldn't be so hasty to make decisions about them either. Looks like things are looking up.

Also, Toriel asked me if I preferred butterscotch or cinnamon. I said cinnamon and she called one more time to ask if I didn't dislike butterscotch, which I didn't and she wanted to know if I had allergies to butterscotch, which I also didn't.

-88-

After picking up a toy knife I found lying around, I made my way to a room that had a tree surrounded by red leaves.

"Oh dear, that took longer than I thought it would," I hear Toriel say.

She stops near the tree and takes out her phone. My CELL PHONE rings and she takes notice of me. She walks over with an overly-concerned look on her face.

"How did you get here, my child?" She asks,"Are you hurt?"

She looks over me for wounds before giving a look of amazement.

"Not a scratch, impressive!" She praises,"Still, I should not have left you alone for so long,"

I've already got this dodging thing down. No need to worry for me anymore.

"It was irresponsible to try to surprise you like this,"

I look at her in curiosity. She notices my expression and puts her hand over her mouth in embarrassment.

"Err...,"She starts,"Well, I suppose I cannot hide it any longer. Come, small one,"

She takes my hand and leads me to a small house. While she heads inside, I take out my diary to write down where I was. It glows for a bit, then dims and returns to normal. Following her inside, I am hit with the warmth of the house. It was comforting and welcoming. A smell wafts throughout the air. I take a sniff and recognize it.

Pie, with a touch of cinnamon and something else.

"Do you smell that?" Toriel asks,"Surprise! It is a butterscotch-cinnamon pie,"

What is the point of giving me a choice if you're just going to do both. Well, I've never had a butterscotch OR cinnamon pie before. Might be tasty!

"I thought we might celebrate your arrival," Toriel explains,"I want you to have a nice time living here. So I will hold off on snail pie for tonight,"

SNAIL pie? Um...well I'll give her the benefit of the doubt. Maybe that's a special name for something completely normal...Who am I kidding? I follow Toriel as she walks down a hallway.

"This is it,"she says, leading me with her hand,"A room of your own. I hope you like it!"

She then rubs my head in a comforting way. She's gentle with it, and is making sure to not mess up my cornrows. A different smell pops up and I wrinkle my nose.

...Something's burning. Hope it isn't the pie. It smelled amazing.

"...Is something burning? Um, make yourself at home,"She says,"And be nice to Frisk, little one!"

Frisk?...OH! It's that child I heard run away on the news report. They're here? I open the door to see a bunk-bed. The room had red wallpaper and was already occupied by another person. It was a small child who had a red and purple striped shirt. They had brown hair and their eyes were closed. They were sitting on the top bunk and staring at me.

"Are you Frisk?"

They nod in confirmation and hold up a stuffed animal, offering me to play with them. I call them down and we talk for a bit. I asked them why they came here, but they just gave a sad look. After a while, we have to sleep, so they offered me the top bunk while they took the bottom. As I close my eyes, I've decided.

As much as I like Toriel, I can't stay here.

-88-

I wake up one day and climb down to notice a slice of butterscotch-cinnamon pie on a plate. I pick it up and it fades away into my ITEMs pocket. I head up into the front of the house and look at Toriel, who is sitting with reading glasses holding a book to her face.

"Up already, I see?"She says,"Um, I want you to know how glad I am to have you here,"

I swallow the large lump that formed in my throat. Her words were making it difficult to get my own out. How was I going to explain to her?

"I want to show you my favorite bug-hunting spot," Toriel says,"I've also prepared a curriculum for your education,"

She's already got everything planned out for me. What a great mother, it's a shame I can't stay.

"This may come as a surprise to you, but I've always wanted to be a teacher...actually, perhaps that isn't very surprising...STILL!," she says.

Well, it isn't, considering that you've taught me everything about FIGHTs. Though, I'll say being ambitious is good! Aiming for something high is rewarding!

"I'm glad to have you living here,"Toriel rubs my head again,"Oh, did you want something?"

I tug on my hair and look down at the floor for a moment. Taking a deep breath, I look back up at her.

"When can I go home?" I ask in a near whisper.

"What? This...this IS your home now," She falters.

No, Toriel...I'm sorry about this. I hear a door open and hear a small gasp from behind me.

"Um...would you like to hear about this book I am reading?", she asks,"It is called '72 Uses for Snails',"

I look at the book as she shows me a page of a snail. It explains that snails flip their digestive systems as they grow.

"Well...that is interesting and all, but...I need to know how to exit the RUINS," I speak a bit louder than last time.

"...I have to do something. Stay here,"She says.

Toriel closes her book, gets up, and hurriedly moves to the next room. As I follow her, she heads down below the house. Frisk comes out from behind a corner and looks at me. They hold out a golden flower and I take it generously. It fades into my ITEMs and I look them over for a bit.

"I know you want to leave,"They speak, to my surprise,"I'll stay here with Toriel when you do. Go on ahead,"

Heading down below the house, I walk and see Toriel. She hears my footsteps and speaks, not turning around.

"You wish to know how to return 'home', do you not?" She asks,"Ahead of us lies the end of the RUINS, a one-way exit to the rest of the underground,"

"Thanks so much for-" I start.

"I am going to destroy it," She explains.

"W-what? Toriel, please-"

"No one will ever be able to leave again," Toriel says,"Now be a good child and go upstairs,"

Toriel walks down the hallway. There is no way I'm letting her destroy my only chance of getting back to my family. Dad and Charles must be looking for me at this very moment. I hurry to follow her again. She stops and speaks, again, not looking at me.

"Every human that falls down here meets the same fate,"She says,"I have seen it again and again,"

"But I know what to do! There's nothing to-"

"They come. They leave. They die,"Toriel doesn't sugarcoat it,"You naive child...if you leave the RUINS...they...ASGORE...will kill you,"

"Toriel this isn't the way to fix things, please just-"

"I'm only protecting you, do you understand?" She says,"...go to your room,"

Toriel walks off again. She seemed fine earlier. I know she wants to help, but she's already helped me enough. I can handle myself!

"Do not try to stop me,"Toriel says,"This is your final warning,"

Toriel continues to the exit.

Well,Toriel, maybe warnings are made to be ignored. I'm sorry... Following her, we arrive at the exit.

"You want to leave so badly?" She asks,"Hmph, you are just like the others,"

She means the other children right? Those other seven.

"There is only one solution to this, prove youself,"Toriel demands,"Prove to me you are strong enough to survive,"

My SOUL appeared from within me and I'm thrust into a FIGHT with Toriel. I remove the toy knife I had, but throw it to the ground. Toriel says nothing, and she launches fireballs at me. I dodge them and continue to not fight her.

"This isn't the right way to solve things Toriel," I argue.

Toriel launches another fire attack, but hesitated at first. I manage to dodge most of them, but take damage from the last set of fire magic. I clutch my side in response, but stand my ground and stare at her.

She finally stops for a moment.

"What are you doing?" She questions,"Attack or run away!"

She launches more fire magic, and I dodge it although I cut it close.

"What are you proving this way?"She asks,"Fight me or leave!"

"I'm proving that FIGHTs don't have to be resolved with conflict!"I yell for the first time in days,"Isn't that what you've been teaching me?"

"Stop it,"She says,"Stop looking at me that way,"

She launches more fire magic. I take the brunt of it, failing to dodge, and my right leg collapses. Toriel gives a pained look at me. Her next fire attack deliberately avoids me. I guess she can't bring herself to end it.

"I know you want to go home, but...but please, go upstairs now,"She pleads,"I promise I will take good care of you here,"

That lump formed in my throat again, and I sigh.

"I know we do not have much, but...we can have a good life here,"She smiles, but it quickly falters.

"No, Toriel,"

"Why are you making this so difficult?" She asks,"Please, go upstairs,"

I shake my head slowly. Toriel laughs in a sort of sad way.

"Pathetic, is it not?" She says,"I cannot save even a single child,"

"Toriel, you've already done so much for me. And you've helped a kid stay safe by vowing to protect them. You've taught me that FIGHTing isn't the way to sort out problems. Yes, it seems easier, and it probably is, it's easy to hurt people, but learning to care goes a long way, even if it's harder," I explain.

I surprised myself with that little speech. I guess you grow quickly down here.

"...I understand, you would just be unhappy trapped down here,"She says,"The RUINS are very small one you get used to them. It would not be right for you to grow up in a place like this,"

She sighs and I give her a small smile.

"My expectations...my loneliness...my fear...for you, my child, I will put them aside,"

She turns around and stares at the door, which had the same design as her shirt.

"If you truly wish to leave the RUINS...I will not stop you,"She says,"However, when you leave...please do not come back. I hope you understand,"

She gives me a hug and I hug her back. Regardless of how she feels, when this is all over, I'll see Toriel again.

"Goodbye, my child," She says, and heads back down the hallway.

-88-

Reaching the end of the exit, another area which is dark shows up. There's a patch of grass in the center and I'm getting deja vu. The flower from before shows up. My SOUL didn't appear, so he wasn't FIGHTing.

"Clever, verrrryyy clever,"Flowey says,"You think you're really smart, don't you? In this world, it's kill or be killed,"

He looks away and grins the same creepy grin from before.

"So you were able to play by your own rules; you spared the life of a single person,"

Flowey laughs and turns into the skull-like shape from before.

"I bet you feel really great," He says,"You didn't kill anybody this time,"

Au contraire, I feel upset right now. I just left goat-mom.

"But what will you do if you meet a relentless killer? You'll die and you'll die and you'll die," It says,"Until you tire of trying,"

What does he even know? I've grown.

"What will you do then?" It says, face showing a row of teeth,"Will you kill out of frustration? Or will you give up entirely on this world, and let ME inherit the power to control it?"

"Why would I let someone like you obtain that?"

"I am the prince of this world's future,"It says,"Don't worry, my little monarch, my plan isn't regicide. This is SO much more interesting,"

His face then literally grows out of himself and he laughs a crazed sort of way. I sneer at him and fold my arms. I was about to throw my clarinet case at him before he disappears.

I head through the arched door at the end and am greeted with the blinding light of the outdoors.

Here we go...

* * *

 **Hopefully that was an interesting chapter! From this point on forward, I'll add in new dialogue to help drive the story in a different direction. It won't go completely off track, but it'll be a sort of split plot. One thing is happening, but at the same time, this is still going on. Remember to review and help me improve my skills.**


	3. Cold Bones

**Prepare for another super long chapter. Also, prepare to meet two of my favorite characters in the entire game. Like always, this chapter is a spoiler to the entire pacifist run, so play the game before reading this. Although, if you're at this part then I suppose you've already done that. Or maybe you just don't care. Either way, enjoy the chapter!**

 **BlueAhoge - What if I told you that Frisk is going to appear later in this story? Be ready for that, okay?**

* * *

I look at the trees all around me. A forest...underground? I decide not to question the UNDERGROUND any longer. I'll be stuck thinking forever if I do...

I walk on the only path out of this place, carefully stepping over a heavy looking branch. Later though, it snaps in two. I look behind me and frantically look at all the trees. I walk faster, and move through a cluster of trees. It was then that I heard footsteps from behind me.

NOPE!

I run as soon as I hear them. Whatever is out there isn't going to get me. I wasn't as afraid in the RUINS because Toriel was there. Here, I'm alone. By myself. Vulnerable. I didn't like that feeling. Unfortunately for me, right before I stepped on the bridge, I tripped over my own feet and fell. My right leg hurt and I couldn't move very far. So, I sat there, facing the bridge, clutching my scraped leg. The footsteps closed in...getting closer...until...

" **Human, don't you know how to greet a new pal?** ", it says," **Turn around and shake my hand** ,"

I stand up (my leg hurting), turn around, and shake his hand, my face looking at the ground in fear. A loud, obnoxious sound plays out for a moment and then dies. I laugh and fall down, my leg having enough from my antics.

"heheh...the old whoopee cushion in the hand trick," it says,"it's ALWAYS funny,"

Well, I'm not sure about always, but it got me to laugh. I looked up at the skeleton. He had a blue shirt on and black shorts. He was rather short, about a foot higher than me. This guy seemed friendly like Toriel. Maybe I can stick with him.

"anyways, you're a human, right?" it asks,"i'm sans, sans the skeleton,"

Sans, huh? Nice name. Sounds like some sort of font though.

"Nice to meet you,Sans!" I say to him,"My name is Anna Sathe,"

"cool name, kid... **cold** enough for you?" He asks.

I snort at the joke. It works both ways; it's cold outside, and he said my name was cool. I like this guy already. It took a bit before I realize he was being serious, too. I was shivering a bit too much and I guess he took notice. He takes off his jacket and offers it to me. He had a white undershirt on. I was about to take it before hesitating.

"You sure it's okay for me?"

"it's fine, kid," Sans reassures.

I gladly take the jacket and put it on. It was slightly big for my size, but I already felt a bit warmer than earlier. I give Sans a sad look; he really didn't have to help me. Sans just waves his hand saying that "it's fine".

"i'm actually supposed to be on watch for humans right now," Sans explains,"but...y'know...i don't really care about capturing anybody,"

That's a relief. So I don't have to worry about Sans giving me a bad time. I was almost reassured that I was okay until he spoke up again.

"now my brother, papyrus...he's a human-hunting FANATIC," He claims,"hey, actually, I think that's him over there,"

Greeaaat. More monsters trying to kill me. I was lucky enough to have Toriel explain how FIGHTs work.

"i have an idea. go through this gate thingy," Sans directs, gesturing towards a gate whose bars were WAY too wide,"yeah, go right through. my bro made the bars too wide to stop anyone,"

This Papyrus fellow sounds like a clumsy one. What kind of person...er, skeleton...makes the bars wider than the bridge?

Sans picks me up off the ground using some strange blue magic. He helps me walk over the bridge into another area, me using him as something to lean on. We pass easily through the bars and reach a small place with a sort of watch post and a lamp. It was oddly my size.

"quick, behind that conveniently-shaped lamp," Sans says.

I hobble over to the lamp and take off Sans' jacket and my clarinet case. He looks at me confused before I manage to fit easily behind the statue.

"smart thinking, kid," Sans praises.

"Thank you," I whisper.

A while later, I hear another pair of footsteps appear. Peeking out from behind the lamp, I see a taller skeleton in a sort of costume standing a fair bit away from Sans. That must be Papyrus.

"sup, bro?" I hear Sans say.

"YOU KNOW WHAT 'SUP', BROTHER!" Papyrus says.

I hide behind the lamp again and cover my ears. That was an awfully loud voice. How does Sans deal with hearing that all the time? Maybe if I keep hearing it, I'll learn to deal with it better.

"IT'S BEEN EIGHT DAYS AND YOU STILL HAVEN'T RECALIBRATED. YOUR. PUZZLES!" Papyrus yells,"YOU JUST HANG AROUND OUTSIDE YOUR STATION. WHAT ARE YOU EVEN DOING?!"

"staring at this lamp. it's really cool. do you wanna look?"

"Sans!" I whisper, peeking out from behind the lamp. He glances at me a bit before giving a reassuring look.

"NO! I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT! WHAT IF A HUMAN COMES THROUGH HERE!?" Papyrus says,"I WANT TO BE READY!"

The ironic thing is that there IS a human here and Sans just told you where I was hiding. Of course, you blow it off because the human protagonist is lucky!

"I WILL BE THE ONE! I MUST BE THE ONE!" Papyrus says, stomping his feet in agitation,"I WILL CAPTURE A HUMAN,"

With that grating loud voice, humans could hear you from a mile away.

"THEN, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS...WILL GET ALL THE THINGS I UTTERLY DESERVE!" Papyrus claims,"RESPECT...RECOGNITION...I WILL FINALLY BE ABLE TO JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD!"

Oh, so he's haughty too. That's fun.

"PEOPLE WILL ASK, TO, BE MY, 'FRIEND'?" Papyrus says,"I WILL BATHE IN A SHOWER OF KISSES EVERY MORNING,"

"hmm...maybe this lamp will help you,"Sans says, gesturing to my hiding spot.

"SANS, YOU ARE NOT HELPING! YOU LAZYBONES!" Papyrus is back to stomping his foot again, although more angrily,"ALL YOU DO IS SIT AND BOONDOGGLE! YOU GET LAZIER AND LAZIER EVERY DAY!"

"hey, take it easy. i've gotten a **ton** of work done today," Sans says in defense,"a skele- **ton** ,"

I tried not to laugh, and it almost worked. But a small giggle escaped me and I hurriedly clasp my hands over my mouth.

"SANS!" Papyrus yells.

"come on. you're smiling," Sans says.

"I AM AND I HATE IT!" Papyrus sighs,"WHY DOES SOMEONE AS GREAT AS ME HAVE TO DO SO MUCH TO GET SOME RECOGNITION?"

"wow, sounds like you're really working yourself...down to the **bone** ,"

I laugh a slight bit louder this time. Sans hears me and grins wider in response.

"UGH!" Papyrus says in aggravation.

Since Papyrus obviously wasn't going to find me anytime soon, I'll take this moment to say something.

"I guess Papyrus lost his **funny bone** ,"

Sans starts laughing while Papyrus just put his skull in his hands, giving up.

"I WILL ATTEND TO MY PUZZLES. AS FOR YOUR WORK? PUT A LITTLE MORE 'BACKBONE' INTO IT!" Papyrus starts laughing at his own joke and we just sit and let him have his moment. He leaves for a bit until coming back and giving one last laugh. He walks off again, for real this time.

"ok, you can come out now," Sans says.

I put on Sans' jacket and my clarinet case. Heading out from behind the lamp, Sans gives an amused smile and chuckles for a small bit.

"that was great, kid! the timing on that joke!"

"Thanks, Sans," I say,"Also, thanks for helping me out so far, I appreciate it,"

"no problem. you oughta get going. he might come back," Sans warns,"and if he does, you'll have to sit through more of my hilarious jokes,"

"Alright,"I say, smiling,"And, again, thanks!"

I give Sans a hug. Sans hugs me with one arm and rubs my head with the other. I run on ahead past the watch post and Sans speaks up again.

"actually, hey...hate to bother ya, but can you do me a favor?" Sans asks.

"Not at all, after all, you helped me," I answer,"Helping you makes us even,"

"great...i was thinking...my brother's been kind of down lately," Sans explains,"he's never seen a human before. and seeing you might just make his day,"

"Are you sure that's an okay idea?" I ask, frowning.

"don't worry, he's not dangerous,"Sans reassures,"even if he tries to be,"

"Well, alright then, just...stay safe, okay?"

"you don't need to worry about me. and thanks a million,"Sans says,"also, can you give me that case of yours?"

"This thing? It's broken,"

"still, can you give it to me?"

"Fine then,"

I take off my instrument case and hand it to Sans, who looks it over for a bit. He nods in satisfaction and puts it on his back.

"i'll be up ahead," Sans says to me.

Sans then heads off in the opposite direction. I was going to ask where he was going until I blinked and he wasn't there anymore. I look around to search for him and came up with absolutely nothing. Giving up, I head farther into the forest, with a small limp from my leg.

Taking the small moment to take out my diary and write down what happened, it glows and dims like normal. This time though, the burn marks from Toriel and my scraped leg healed. I looked completely normal and had no scratches. I looked myself over for a bit...yep, I'm fine. Well, that's handy.

There was a box right next to where I was. I walked over to it and opened it up. Inside was a glove. I decided to put away the things I had to free up some space. I put away the Spider Donut, the Butterscotch Pie I didn't eat yet, and the Golden Flower that Frisk gave me.

Heading on up ahead, I see Sans and Papyrus speaking.

"WHERE IS YOUR JACKET?"

"dunno, paps,"

Papyrus doesn't pry and continues speaking.

"SO, AS I WAS SAYING ABOUT UNDYNE-"

Papyrus notices me and I wave. He looks to Sans who looks at me while Sans turns to Papyrus who looks at me. This goes on for a while until they're literally spinning from all the turning. They then face away from me and Papyrus speaks.

"SANS! OH MY GOD! IS THAT...A HUMAN!?"

They turn around and look in my direction. It was a while before I noticed Papyrus' gaze was on a rock BEHIND me. SANS was the one looking in my direction. While Papyrus was fixated on the rock, Sans waves and gives a thumbs up.

"uhhhh...actually, i think that's a rock,"

"OH,"

"hey, what's that in front of the rock?"

"OH MY GOD!" Papyrus then turns to Sans and attempts to whisper,"IS...IS THAT A HUMAN?

"yes,"Sans whispers back.

"OH MY GOD! SANS! I FINALLY DID IT! AND IT HAS YOUR JACKET!" Papyrus cheers.

Papyrus seemed a bit obnoxious earlier, but he seemed alright now. The guy was adorable when he was happy. Maybe if I stick around I can make his world a bit brighter.

"UNDYNE WILL...I'M GONNA...I'LL BE SO...POPULAR! POPULAR! POPULAR!" Papyrus yells.

Papyrus straightens his voice out and tries to put on his best heroic-sounding voice.

"HUMAN! YOU SHALL NOT PASS THIS AREA! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL STOP YOU!" He claims,"I WILL THEN CAPTURE YOU! YOU WILL BE DELIVERED TO THE CAPITAL,"

I listen to this guy's speech and become all the more amused by his presence. He seems like fun. I'll have a great time with these skeleton brothers.

"CONTINUE...ONLY IF YOU DARE!" Papyrus then walks off laughing to himself.

"well, that went well. don't sweat it, kid. i'll keep an eyesocket out for ya," Sans says.

Sans then walks off in the correct direction this time. I head back the way I came and take a path that led to a river. The water wasn't acting the way it should. Instead of moving correctly, it was just sitting there, the waves frozen where they were. I was wondering what was going on before I hear another voice.

"Howdy! Remember me?" I turn around and there is that flower again.

"What do YOU want?" I ask.

"Just came to tell you about what's going on,"Flowey says,"That water back there behind you, it's become part of the corruption,"

"Corruption?"I ask in confusion,"What do you mean?"

"Your friend Frisk back there doesn't quite get it. From the amount of times they've RESET the world, something has changed a bit each time. Things aren't acting the way they should, choices are being made incorrectly. And then there's that vague feeling of deja vu,"

"Why should I believe you?"

"The proof is right there,"

"...What else happened with Frisk?"

"Well, unfortunately for the human, their ability to RESET the world has been taken away and given away,"

"Given to who?"

"You. I'm surprised you haven't figured it out already. Every time you write down something in that diary, you SAVE the world. It's a way of going back to whatever you did last. It keeps things from being lost. It being taken away from Frisk is why they choose to stay back in the RUINS. If they die, they're gone. There is no SAVE to LOAD from,"

I sit here and think. Is the reason they told me to go on ahead was because they knew I had this ability?

"Well, I'm done explaining all of this to you. Have fun, Anna,"

-88-

The road out of the forest was long and a bit difficult. The mood was lightened from the humor Sans and Papyrus had given me. I met all sorts of different sights, from Snowdrakes and Ice Caps, to Lesser Dog and Greater Dog. There was even a dog WEDDING at one part. It was all good...besides Jerry...

I managed to pick up a piece of a snowman. It asked me to carry it very far. So, me, wanting to help it out, obliged. Papyrus seems to enjoy making spaghetti and puzzles. Though, he prefers jumble over crosswords. I prefer crosswords more, apparently that makes me weird. Although, Papyrus DID try to 'solve' the horoscope once.

There was one point where Papyrus caught me on a bridge and set up this miniature gauntlet. Although, he didn't activate it because he thought it was going to be waaaaay to easy for me. Joke's on him, that looked like I was going to need tons of LOADing.

There was this one deer-like enemy that was decorated like a Christmas tree. Apparently some monsters thought it would be a great idea to cover him in that kind of stuff as a prank. I took all of it off and gave him money as a gift, since I couldn't think of anything better.

It was then that I finally arrived in Snowdin. I walked into the shop and started chatting it up with a bunny creature.

"Hiya! Welcome to Snowdin! I can't remember the last time I saw a fresh face around here," She says,"Where did you come from? The capital? You don't look like a tourist, are you here by yourself?"

"Well, yes, actually. My name is Anna Sathe, and I stumbled across this place after moving through the forest. You know what I can do here?"

"Grillby's has food, and the library has information,"She speaks,"If you're tired, you can take a nap at the inn. It's right next door-my sister runs it. And if you're bored, you can sit outside and watch those wacky skeletons do their thing.

My eyes widened at her mention of the two.

"So that caught your attention? There's two of 'em...brothers, I think. They just showed up one day and...asserted themselves." The bunny says,"The town has gotten a lot more interesting since then,"

I said thanks to the bunny for the help and walk out of the shop. Running through the little town, I see the way out of here. Walking out of the town, I'm met with a smaller set of trees to walk through before I realize that the air is getting harder to see through. It was a while before my vision was completely obscured.

After a while, I see a figure appearing, taller. A cape-like thing at the end. Definately Papyrus. I stand there and watch him as he looks down at me.

"HUMAN. ALLOW ME TO TELL YOU ABOUT SOME COMPLEX FEELINGS," He says,"FEELINGS LIKE...THE JOY OF FINDING ANOTHER PASTA LOVER. THE ADMIRATION FOR ANOTHER'S PUZZLE SOLVING SKILLS,"

Though he's still loud, he isn't outright yelling. It's bearable and it makes the air a bit heavy.

"THE DESIRE TO HAVE A COOL, SMART PERSON THINK YOU ARE COOL. THESE FEELINGS...THEY MUST BE WHAT YOU ARE FEELING RIGHT NOW!"

This guy...oh my god. I start giggling a small bit.

"I CAN HARDLY IMAGINE WHAT IT MUST BE LIKE TO FEEL THAT WAY. AFTER ALL, I AM VERY GREAT. I DON'T EVER WONDER WHAT HAVING LOTS OF FRIENDS IS LIKE,"

"...You're lying to yourself Papyrus," I speak up.

"WHAT?"

"I heard you back there earlier, when Sans was talking to you about the lamp. I was hiding behind it listening to your conversation. I know how it feels to not have many friends. I've struggled with being the odd one out at school. It's not as amazing up there as it is here in the UNDERGROUND. If you want...I can be your friend!"

"R-REALLY?" He starts, but cuts himself off,"NO! THIS ISNT' RIGHT! I MUST CAPTURE YOU!"

I sigh and ready myself.

"THEN, I CAN FULFILL MY LIFELONG DREAM! POWERFUL! POPULAR! PRESTIGIOUS! THAT'S PAPYRUS...THE NEWEST MEMBER...OF THE ROYAL GUARD!"

My SOUL appears from me and the FIGHT starts.

-88-

Papyrus somehow managed to turn my SOUL color to blue. I was forced to jump to avoid the bone attacks instead of moving over them. He questioned why I wouldn't fight. Occasionally, he would dab stuff onto his skull before realizing he didn't have any ears. He questioned what would he get out of capturing me and realizes that not many humans fall down here. Sure the seven and Frisk appeared, but besides them, nobody else.

Papyrus was surprisingly tough. I got injured from a few of his attacks, but he was determined to capture me.

"GIVE UP OR FACE MY **SPECIAL ATTACK** ," he says to me.

"No!" I yelled to him. I was going to make it past this guy. I've managed to best everyone else through non-violent means. This strategy should work as well.

"ALRIGHT THEN, BEHOLD! MY SPECIAL ATTACK!"

Although, I look to his side, and a dog is chewing on a bone. I laugh for a bit at the timing of the animal, but Papyrus becomes aggravated and decides to use a "really cool normal attack".

It didn't look normal to me, the bones would grow and shrink. There was this one time where he gave me a gigantic cluster of gems that I jumped really far over. I dodged two clusters of bones that made the words "Cool Dude," and avoided a last one that looked like a bone on a skateboard.

That attack tired Papyrus out and he winded up giving up. I was injured slightly, but otherwise, I was okay for the most part. I was going to keep a straight face and listen to this guy wise up, but then he said this.

"WHO KNEW ALL I NEEDED TO MAKE FRIENDS WAS TO GIVE PEOPLE AWFUL PUZZLES AND THEN FIGHT THEM?"

I laughed again from all that. Yep, I definitely like Papyrus a bit more now. We agreed to be friends and Papyrus gave me directions to the surface. Also, he mentioned the King of All Monsters and addressed that King as a "big fuzzy pushover". How degrading.

When all was said and done, I decided to head back into Snowdin to talk to the skeleton brothers one more time.

Who knows, maybe I'll learn more about this UNDERGROUND place.

* * *

 **So...how'd I do with this chapter. I hope the small backstory with Frisk added a bit more interesting things to the story. I'm also making it a thing where I have Anna solve the internal problems the characters are having. This adds a bit more of growth to Anna and the characters around her.**


	4. Journey to Waterfall

**Prepare for another chapter! These are probably going to wind up with at least 3,000 words if nothing comes up and causes that not to be the case. I'd like you guys to put up with my long chapters and pull through to the end.**

 **This story has True-Pacifist Route spoilers. Please play the game if you haven't yet. This game is one of the rare gems in the world and it would be such a shame if I were to spoil it for you. Please stop reading this text.**

 **UNTIL THEN, seriously, stop reading this text.**

* * *

Stepping back into Snowdin again, I take in the entire area. I only briefly spoke to one of the shop owners because I had a skeleton to deal with. But now, with no things to tend to, I can progress and speak to everyone.

The first thing that grabbed my attention was the brightly lit Christmas tree. I was happy to see something familiar for once. I didn't know they celebrated Christmas down here. I walk up to a blue bear and speak to it.

"Hello, my name is Anna!" I say.

"Hey, I'm Brian,"He says,"Did you hear? Awful teens tormented a local monster by decorating its tree like horns. So, we started giving that monster presents to make it feel better. Now it's a tradition to put presents underneath a decorated tree,"

"I have a feeling you won't need to worry about that monster. I've met it and helped get the decorations off of it,"

"Well, nice job, Anna!"

I wave and walk around the village some more. Another bear, not far from that last, catches my eye. I walk up to him and he says to himself.

"This town doesn't have a mayor. But if there's ever a problem, a skeleton will tell a fish lady about it," He says,"Thaaaaaat's politics!"

I laugh a bit and assume that the skeleton is Papyrus. Sans just doesn't seem like the type to me. Although, I shouldn't judge a book by its cover. I look up and see a giant sign in big letters that reads "GRILLBY'S". Heading inside, I notice that it looks strangely like some sort of bar.

Looking about, I notice all sorts of unique monsters. There were some familiar faces. There were the two dog lovers, Greater Dog, Lesser Dog, and Doggo. Besides that, everyone else, I had no clue who they were. The male of the Dogi warns me about Greater Dog being extremely affectionate. I take that in mind when I walk up to Doggo.

"Hello, I'm that thing that pet you earlier. How's it going?"

"Nothing much, I'm thinking of getting a spiked collar to show off my personality," He says,"It makes a statement like..."Attach a leash to me and take me for a walk please,"

"Maybe when I get the chance, I'll take you for a walk. How does that sound?"

He doesn't say anything, but he gives a grin and his tail starts wagging. He turns back to the table where the other dogs were at and thinks.

"Those dogs are part of the ROYAL GUARD, the elite military group led by UNDYNE," A older duck says from afar,"She's rude, loud, and beats up everybody who gets in her way...It's no wonder all the kids want to be like her when they grow up!"

"What does Undyne look like?" I ask him.

"Some sort of fish lady," He says.

I walk over and see what Lesser Dog is doing, apparently, it's playing a game of poker...and it's losing. I don't see how it's managing to do that. I was about to head out before Greater Dog grabs me and licks my face with its huge tongue and puts me down. I stand there for a bit and I hear Dogamy laugh a tiny bit.

"I warned you, weird puppy,"

A towel hits me from the side of my head and I see Grillby from behind the counter, he seems amused even if I can't hear him laughing.

I take this moment to get all of the slobber off of my face. Handing the towel back to Grillby, he whispers.

"...Hope that wasn't too bad...,"

"Oh, it was nothing," I said.

Shortly after, I hear Greater Dog's bark and I freeze. This time, Grillby is laughing along with everyone else. My face flushes in embarrassment and I hurriedly walk out of the bar.

Walking out of Snowdin, I notice Papyrus outside of his house. I decide to speak to him.

"Hey, Papyrus,"

"HELLO, TINY HUMAN. YOU CAME BACK TO SEE ME! YOU MUST BE REALLY SERIOUS ABOUT BEING MY FRIEND,"

"Well, yeah. You don't just become someone's friend and ditch them right then and there. It's mean,"

"FOR COMING BACK, I'LL HAVE TO TAKE YOU SOMEPLACE REALLY SPECIAL..." He says,"A PLACE I LIKE TO SPEND A LOT OF TIME!"

I follow Papyrus as we walk back into Snowdin. I'm about to ask where we're going before he suddenly turns around and we're back at his house. I follow him inside and I'm welcomed with a 2 story home. There was a painting of a bone on the wall and a rock with sprinkles on a table.

"WELCOME TO SCENIC MY HOUSE!" Papyrus yells,"ENJOY AND TAKE YOUR TIME!"

I walk into the kitchen and notice that the sink is taller than the fridge. I took this moment to consider why the heck they even have something like this before remembering the number one rule of the UNDERGROUND: roll with it!

"IMPRESSED?" Papyrus asks,"I INCREASED THE HEIGHT OF MY SINK. NOW I CAN FIT MORE BONES UNDER IT! TAKE A LOOKSY!"

I open the sink and there's the dog from before munching on a bone. It gives a shocked look at me.

"WHAT!?" Papyrus exclaims,"CATCH THAT MEDDLING CANINE!"

Too late...it's already outside.

"CURSES!"

It was at that moment that Sans opens the door to his room and plays his trombone in a sort of sad way. I look at Sans and laugh and his grin gets bigger. He hurriedly closes the door to his room.

"SANS!" Papyrus yells,"STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC!"

"Keep it up, Sans!" I yell to his room,"I found the music pretty **humerus**!"

I hear Sans laughing loudly from his room. Papyrus groans in a frustrated way. I'm standing there with the biggest smug look on my face. I turned on the TV, but it just played one of those frustrating screens where you can't see a darned thing. Papyrus claims it's just a bad episode, though.

-88-

HANGOUT START!

I honestly have no idea what just happened. Here I am stopping buy to see the skele-bros and now here I am hanging out in Papyrus' room. Apparently Papyrus is so clueless about hanging out that he needs a GUIDEBOOK for things to work out according to plan. I trust him though, after all: you can't spell 'prepared' without several letters from his name.

Step One - Press the [C] key on your keyboard for 'FRIENDSHIP HUD'

Once again, the notion that a magical keyboard is just going to show up an-

Oh there we go.

Step Two - Ask them to hang out.

Well, we're already here so...

Step Three! Put on nice clothes to show you care!

It was at this moment that Papyrus notices my dress I was already wearing when I came here. He assumes that I've been planning this from the start. I just said yes to feed his imagination. I don't know if that's healthy, but it worked in my favor. I got a laugh out of his shocked expression.

"NO!" He yells,"YOU PLANNED IT ALL! YOU'RE WAY BETTER AT HANGING OUT THAT I AM!"

"N-NOOOO! YOUR FRIENDSHIP POWER!" Papyrus says.

For some odd reason, a magical bar that says friendship appears and fills up a bit with blue. I'm resisting the urge to think about how the heck that's possible. MUST. NOT. QUESTION. UNDERGROUND.

"DON'T THINK YOU'VE BESTED ME YET!" Papyrus says,"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, HAVE NEVER BEEN BEATEN AT HANGING OUT! AND I NEVER WILL! I CAN EASILY KEEP UP WITH YOU!"

This'll be fun.

"YOU SEE. I, TOO, CAN WEAR CLOTHING! IN FACT...I ALWAYS WEAR MY 'SPECIAL' CLOTHES UNDERNEATH MY REGULAR CLOTHES!" Papyrus claims proudly.

I was about to wonder why he wears that as a regular outfit before realizing that Sans already told me why. He says that Papyrus calls it his battle body or something, and it was created for a costume party.

Papyrus graces me with an over-the-top outfit that would most likely be worn by a gang member or someone that was on a basketball team. I smile at the look of it and the hangout continues on.

Eventually the date winds up with me taking off his hat and him revealing to me a plate of spaghetti. The taste of it was...okay. Sans said that in a while he might actually make something edible. If this was better than what did he have earlier? Papyrus took my sickened face as a passionate one.

He resolved now that I was completely obsessed with him. Even though that's not quite true (Sans would be SLIGHTLY more accurate since I'm more open with him). Still though, Papyrus turned out to be a likable guy. I'll definitely talk to him more once I get the chance to, no doubt.

"YOU SHOULD HANG OUT WITH MY BOSS, UNDYNE!" He says,"I THINK IF YOU SPREAD YOUR FRIEND ENERGY OUT MORE...YOU'LL HAVE A MORE HEALTHY LIFESTYLE,"

So the hangout ends and I resolve to leaving Snowdin. Whatever's going on with this place, I want to help them. I know I don't have to, but I feel like it's the right thing to do.

-88-

Passing the area where Papyrus and I fought, I make my way to an area that was filled with water. There were blue flowers poking out of the ground in some spots. Taking off the jacket I got from Sans, I notice that it isn't cold anymore. I put it back on and continue forward.

I eventually reach a small area with a waterfall. Sans is standing outside of his post and he looks bored. I take this small moment to open my diary and write in it. What did Flowey call this again? SAVing? It's quite useful. There was a red monster that told me something about that big blue flower next to it. Apparently its called an Echo Flower. It's name comes from the fact that it repeats the last thing it heard.

I walk up to Sans after listening to the flower repeat what the red monster just said.

"what?" he asks,"haven't you seen a guy with two jobs before?"

"Well actually my dad used to work twice ever since Mom disappeared,"

He ponders my words and gives a sort of sympathetic look.

"well, fortunately, two jobs means twice as many legally-required breaks,"

Of course, Sans. Of course you would mention that. That's just like you.

"i'm going to grillby's. wanna come?"

"Sure thing! Oh, here's your jacket back,"

Sans takes it and puts it on. I notice that he's wearing a white turtleneck now.

"well, if you insist...i'll pry myself away from my work,"

"You wanted to go with me anyway, huh?"

Sans' grin slowly gets wider.

"over here," Sans says, heading off farther into this new part of the UNDERGROUND,"i know a shortcut,"

-88-

Within an instant, we were at Grillby's. I looked around and tripped. Sans helps me off the floor and speaks.

"are you always tripping over your own feet?"

"Not my fault this time! That shortcut was a bit disorienting,"

"sorry about that...did you trip with paps?"

"No, but if I did, he **wouldn't have the heart** to mention it,"

Sans chuckles at my joke.

"nice job, kid. if you weren't busy, i'd like having you around,"

"Same here,"

"anyway...hey, everyone,"

"Hey, Sans," Dogamy and Dogaressa say.

"Greetings, Sans," Says a monster

"Hiya, Sansy," Says a bunny creature.

"Hey Sans, weren't you just here for breakfast a few minutes ago?" Another one says.

Sans waves off the suspicion,"nah, i haven't had breakfast in at least half an hour. you must be thinking of brunch,"

The room laughs a small bit, me included. We were about to sit down before Sans speaks up.

"hey, wait a-"

A loud, even more obnoxious sound starts playing when I sit down. I stay there for a second and put my head in my hands. Why did this happen TWICE?

"whoops, watch where you sit down," Sans says,"sometimes weirdos put whoopee cushions on the seats,"

I shoot him a look and he just looks away, a blue hue on his face.

"Nice colors," I say.

Sans freezes and the blue color darkens.

He sits down and we order two burgers, which I'm surprised they have down here. I would've expected something strange like Toriel's snail pie. Considering that she had butterscotch-cinnamon pie, my suspicions of other things have died down...for now...

Sans offers me ketchup, I decline it, and Sans pours the ENTIRE bottle into his mouth. I sit there absolutely dumbfounded at what I was witnessing. I look to Grillby and he just stares at Sans.

"it's not polite to stare, kid,"

"Oh, sorry,"

"so...my brother...he's cool isn't he?"

"Of course,"

"well, cool or not, you have to admit he tries real hard,"

"Definitely,"

"well...one day, he went to the house of the head of the royal guard," Sans explains,"and begged her to let him be in it,"

He really DOES try hard.

"of course, she shut the door on him because it was midnight,"Sans says,"but the next day, she woke up and saw him still waiting there,"

"I would've left if that happened,"

"well that's papyrus," Sans jokes,"seeing his dedication, she decided to give him warrior training. it's, uh, still a work in progress,"

"He's really progressing. While we were fighting, he really showed what he can do. I have no doubt he'll get better,"

Sans thinks over my words for a bit before giving a look of realization.

"oh yeah, i wanted to ask you something,"

"have you ever heard of a **talking flower**?"

Wait...how does he?

"Y-yeah actually..."

"so you know all about it...the **echo flower** ,"

I HONESTLY THOUGHT HE-

"they're all over the marsh. say something to them, and they'll repeat it over and over,"

"I saw one earlier, what about 'em?"

"well, papyrus told me something interesting the other day," Sans says,"sometimes, when no one else is around...a flower appears and whispers things to him,"

"A flower... **appears**? It isn't just there?"

"that's what papyrus told me. someone must be using an echo flower to play a trick on him,"

Somehow, I have a feeling that isn't the case here...

"keep an eye out, ok?"

"Sure thing, Sans,"

"thanks...welp, that was a long break. i can't believe i let ya pull me away from work for that long,"

"You WANTED to come, don't play that mess with me!"

Sans laughs, and heads out the door,"put the order on my tab, grillby,"

I turn back to Grillby.

"Is that okay?" I ask.

"...He does this all the time, don't get dragged in his antics, okay?"

"How high is the bill from all of his orders," I question.

"Let's just say...not even Asgore Dreemurr would be able to pay for it," He jokes

I give a look of shock.

"No worries...he'll pay for it soon enough," Grillby says, his flame growing a bit brighter.

Well I'm just gonna take the one-way exit out of this conversation.

"about the instrument earlier, i'm fixing it for ya,"

"Really?"

"sure, kid,"

"Why? You don't need to,"

"why are you complaining?"

"I-"

I honestly have no idea. I just resolve to locking Sans in another one of my hugs. He hugs me back a bit tighter than last time. I hear a camera sound from somewhere and Sans looks around a bit frantically after letting me go.

" **Who did that?** " he says, searching the onlooking crowd.

Somehow the air felt a bit heavier. I notice that the light in his eye is flickering.

"Hey, calm down, it's just a camera," I say.

Sans looks between me and the people in the town that are staring at him. He puts his hands in his pockets and walks with me back to the waterfall.

I can tell I'm going to enjoy myself in the UNDERGROUND. I've met Toriel, Sans, and Papyrus. Even though not everyone here is friendly, they're relatable.

For now though, I have a second place to pass through.

And I'm making sure I meet Undyne.

* * *

 **Was this chapter good? I can't tell if it was. I wanted to add what would happen if you were to go back to Snowdin to see Papyrus again. This game is way too quirky for me to miss much. I want to go over every special thing this game has, while adding in some happy and feelsy things. Like for instance, the friendship (yes, they're not being shipped, sadly) between Sans and Anna.**

 **This is currently the only story where I've had the views skyrocket within a day! I'm proud and I thank you guys for reading this. Like always, please review if you get the chance. I'd like to know what you guys think. I need to make this story enjoyable for you and me.**


	5. Close Calls

**I am loving the attention this story is getting. I didn't think you guys would like it so much! When this hits double digit reviews, followers, or favorites, I'll release a special chapter in celebration of my most popular story so far. It'll be completely cut off from the story though. This keeps it from interfering with anything important. So...enjoy the chapter. And yes, it's long. You can stop reading the text now.**

 **BlueAhoge - You don't know how much your feedback is helping me, seriously, I love it when you review.**

 **Seriously, stop reading this text!**

* * *

After heading back to the watch post where Sans was, he turns to me.

"let's hang out again sometime,"

"Sure! That'd be great! I'd be **bonely** without you!" I say to him.

Sans snickers and gives a thumbs up to me.

We wave "goodbye" to each other and I head into this new area.

-88-

Right as I step in, I'm greeted with a sign.

"This is a box," It reads,"You can put an item in or take an item out. Why would you though? You can't use items when they're in the box,"

Apparently it comes from a person that hates boxes. Why in the world would someone spend their life hating something over the strangest reason? If you want to use items, just keep them with you. There was an echo flower a ways off from where I am, but I didn't feel the need to listen to it repeat things.

As I'm walking past the waterfall, avoiding the rocks, I notice a small gap in the water. Heading in that direction, I stumble across a small cave. Inside it was an old tutu. I decide to keep it with me for the time being. Onto the next area, I notice a patch of tall grass. The path continued on the other side, so I headed in that direction, naturally. As I'm walking past I hear a particularly loud voice.

It's Papyrus.

I'm only able to get a good look by looking out of the grass and standing back. There was another figure, one that was armored, standing near Papyrus. It was tall and looked menacing.

"H...HI, UNDYNE!" Papyrus says,"I'M HERE WITH MY DAILY REPORT..."

 _THAT_ is Undyne? Well, she sure is...frightening. Or maybe it's the armor. Armor always makes people look a bit bigger than they really are. Or maybe she's scary without it... _EITHER WAY_...

"UHHH...REGARDING THAT HUMAN I CALLED YOU ABOUT EARLIER..."

Undyne turns to Papyrus in a bit of a sharp manner. Papyrus wasn't lying when he said that Undyne was the head of the Royal Guard. She seems to have the people around her in check.

"HUH...DID I FIGHT THEM?" Papyrus asks,"Y-YES! OF COURSE I DID! I FOUGHT THEM VALIANTLY!"

Yes...whatever your version of "valiantly" means, I'm sure that's exactly what happened. Or maybe he's just being haughty again. Why am I even thinking about this kind of stuff?

"...WHAT? DID I CAPTURE THEM..." Papyrus pauses for a bit,"W-W-WELL...NO,"

Oh here it comes, I'm sure this scary armored woman is going to do something absolutely horrifying.

"I TRIED VERY HARD, UNDYNE, BUT IN THE END...I FAILED," Papyrus says.

I'm finally able to hear Undyne speaking clearly.

"Well, since you weren't able to handle the task, I'll take the human's SOUL myself!"

 _THIS THING IS COMING AFTER ME!?_ NOPE! My face slowly becomes more panicky.

"W-What?" Papyrus falters.

I notice that he didn't speak in his usual loud voice for a moment. I guess that must have gotten to him.

"BUT UNDYNE, YOU DON'T H-HAVE TO DESTROY THEM! YOU SEE..."

"Enough of this! We're supposed to have the human's SOUL and bring it to King Asgore! That's what the Royal Guard is! THIS IS WHAT WE DO!" Undyne snaps,"I'd like to finish up the job if you don't mind!"

"...I UNDERSTAND," Papyrus says,"I'LL HELP YOU IN ANY WAY I CAN,"

That little traitor! Now I have two dangerously strong people after me. I'd rather not be bashed to death with bones. So...time to go!

I begin to move slowly out from the grass and edge away. Unfortunately, the grass had to hate me and make a sound when I moved. I froze, and shrunk into the grass. Apparently Undyne noticed that sound, because she turned to the grass very quickly. Walking up to it, she creates a spear and aims at the grass. I am practically horrified at what's going on. The thought of being inches away from being impaled is not a comforting thought. I don't know if you've experienced this, but it makes your heart stop for a few seconds. Undyne scans the grass before giving up and disappearing. I run out of the grass and cheer.

"SCORE ONE FOR THE HUMAN! TAKE THAT, UNDYNE!" I yell.

It was at that moment I hear a rustle in the bushes. I freeze, mentally kicking myself for what I just did. Slowly turning around, I see a kid come out of the bushes. It's the kid I met back in Snowdin, the one without any arms. Monster Kid, right? He had a striped shirt with four spikes on his head. The rest of him looked generic, the only thing that was different was the tiny tail at the end. I fall to the ground in relief and take a few moments to catch my breath.

"Yo...did you see the way she was staring at you?" Monster Kid asks,"That...was AWESOME!"

"Are you dense!? SHE WAS GOING TO TURN ME INTO HUMAN NUGGETS! I WAS GOING TO BE A SHISH KABOB!" I yell in exasperation.

"Undyne's waaaayyyy to nice for that! Trust me! She's awesome!" He insists,"C'mon, let's go watch her beat up some bad guys!"

Monster Kid runs off, but trips. He picks his face up off the ground before running ahead again. Right before I leave, I SAVE the world by writing in my diary what I just experienced.

In the next room, I read a sign that says,"When four Bridge Seeds align in the water, they will sprout," This was a great help otherwise I would've never known what those humongous seeds do. Making a bridge across the waterfall, I hear the water move about a small bit. Turning around, I see a sort of muscular fish-horse creature sitting on the edge of the Bridge Seeds. I stare at it a bit and it talks to me.

"Where are you going? ;)" It winks at me.

Oh no...

I'm thrust into a FIGHT with the monster and I take this small opportunity to use the 'Check' option within the ACT panel. Apparently its name was Aaron, and it makes attacks harder to dodge from...the bottom of the...oh, right. Where I can go is restricted when I enter a FIGHT. This means I can't stay far away from it and dodge safely. Well, this'll be fun.

"Check me all you want. ;)" Aaron says to me.

Please dear God stop winking at me. Don't let this be one of those perverted creeps. I reeaaally don't want to be tied down in a relationship. People sometimes forget I'm 9 because of all the things I know. I was wondering what its attack was before I see large muscles appear and start heading upwards from behind me. During this, Aaron is flexing. They weren't too hard to dodge, but they had a large range to hit me. I challenge him and flex. Aaron flexes harder than me and speaks.

"Flexing contest? OK, flex more. ;)"

I saw drops of water, nope...that's definitely sweat. WHY IS THIS AN ATTACK!? IT'S JUST DISTURBING. Also, how is this guy managing to create tha- WHY AM I THINKING ABOUT THIS ANYWAY!? I get hit a few times and my health drops like it's hot. Getting my mind in the right spot, I flex harder. Aaron, having the muscle size of a redwood tree's trunk, manages to flex thrice as hard.

"Nice!" He praises,"I won't lose tho ;)"

I bet you won't you creeper fish. I'm thinking getting captured by Undyne is a better option at this point. At least I have a lesser chance of being taken away by this eerie thing. The next attack is the muscles again. Luckily, I've got the pattern down so I take no damage. When I flex, Aaron flexes so hard he manages to end the battle. I don't know if that counts as a win or a loss. Either way...onto the puzzles! I see a sign and create a bridge to reach it.

"Congratulations!" It says,"You've failed the puzzle,"

This cheeky little- why would you take the time out of your day to put a completely useless sign off to the side JUST to taunt people who read it? Man, people can be the worst sometimes. I guess it's only natural to want to spite people. It was still really rude though. There was a bell on a wall that recalled the bridge seeds. I managed to align them just right and reach the upper part of the room.

It was at that moment that I received a call from Papyrus. I didn't want to answer it, but as soon as it reached three rings, I caved in and answered it.

"HELLO!" He says cheerfully,"THIS IS PAPYRUS!"

"How in the world are you calling me?" I ask him, raising an eyebrow.

"IT WAS EASY!" He claims,"I JUST DIALED EVERY NUMBER SEQUENTIALLY UNTIL I GOT YOURS!"

Papyrus laughs at his words while my mouth drops open a small bit. I want to ask _why_ he would do that, but then again, he's Papyrus.

"SO...WHAT ARE YOU WEARING...?"He asks me,"I'M...ASKING FOR A FRIEND,"

"Who's the friend?" I ask him.

"ER..."He trails off.

"Well?" I persist.

He continues on talking as if I never asked him that question while I slowly realize who he's talking about.

"SHE THOUGHT SHE SAW YOU WEARING A FADED RIBBON," He explains,"IS THAT TRUE? ARE YOU WEARING A FADED RIBBON?"

Sharp eye. Understandable though, Undyne is the head of the Royal Guard. It would make sense for her to be better at most things than the others under her. Though, this is bad for me because now she knows what I look like.

"...Yeah," I say, reluctantly.

What else am I gonna do. Regardless of what happens, she'll know that she was right about me having the ribbon. If I take it off, she'll remember my face. There's no other way around it, I have to deal with her, head on.

"GOT IT!" He says,"HAVE A NICE DAY!"

Into the next room, I see echo flowers spread throughout the area. I can hear them repeat the last words of people that came through here.

What I can gather from it all is that two people are speaking. One of them is explaining that wishes come true if you wish with all of your heart.

...I WISH TO BE HOME...liers...

A sign labelled this place as the 'Wishing Room'. I walk up to the next flower and hear the same voice saying that wishing with lots of people all at once can't be wrong and that the king will prove that. If I'm right, the king's name is King Asgore. From what Papyrus told me back after we finished fighting, his last name is Dreemurr. So, in all, his name is King Asgore Dreemurr.

It sure does make him SOUND important. I wonder why Papyrus described him as a 'big fuzzy pushover'. If he's the king he must be powerful. Walking through the flowers, my SOUL appears. That meant a FIGHT for me. Another creature shows up. I 'Check' it and it gives the name, Woshua.

"Wosh u face," It says.

People talk in some weird ways. It begins to spray water drops at me. It was difficult to dodge since Woshua spun while he sprayed. I got hit a few times and realized I didn't heal from my last battle. If I didn't ACT soon, this FIGHT would end me. This enemy seemed to be very intent on 'cleaning' me off. So, I obliged.

"Hey, I got a bit of dirt on me from the other FIGHT I had, can you help?"

The crank on it started spinning and it hops around. It must be happy that I asked that.

"Green means clean," It says.

It starts doing the same spinning attack from earlier. I saw a green water drop shoot out. Keeping Woshua's words in mind, I move towards it and grab it. Part of my HP is healed and Woshua seems content with it's job.

"I don't want to fight," I tell it.

The battle ends because I used MERCY. Why FIGHT if you can resolve things? Sure, it requires a bit more effort, but it works out and pays off. I owe all of this to Toriel. Speaking of which...I call Toriel and the phone rings for a bit, but she doesn't pick up. It was a nice try though, she must still be a bit heartbroken about my decision to leave. I'll come back to see her before I leave this place though.

Back to the flowers, I hear the voice saying that they wish that they and their sister could see the real stars one day. That sounds like a nice wish. I know that the sparkling lights I see above me aren't stars, but very shiny stones. It must give them excitement hearing about actual stars, I don't blame them. I notice a telescope a little bit off from where I was standing. I checked it and noticed that there was writing on the lid. i move it around a bit to get a closer look. When I finally got a clear shot...

"CHECK WALL ^" It says in big letters.

There was a blank wall north from where I was. I head in that direction and meet a dead end. I was a bit confused before I actually scanned the wall and found a soft spot. I push my hand farther in and the wall comes down. The hole lead me into another part of the marsh.

This new room had cattails and a boardwalk. It looked eerie though, so I hesitated and looked around for a small bit. Seeing that it was alright, I head out onto the boardwalk and read the signs. They explained the war between humans and monsters.

Apparently human SOULs are exceptionally strong compared to monster SOULs. They were so strong, in fact, that it would take every monster JUST to equal one. It didn't look good for the monsters, but I kept reading. They reveal that the weakness is the strength of the SOUL itself and that if a human is defeated by a monster, that monster can take the human SOUL. The result is described as a "best with unfathomable power".

What really hit me is how they describe their own kind as a beast. The only thing that's changed about them is that they have a human SOUL within them. I was intent on thinking the monsters were being rash before I saw an illustration of the 'beast'. It looked very unsettling to me. If I witnessed that in real life, I'd probably pack my bags and leave the area forever.

I step on a platform and it carries me to the other side of the boardwalk. The path was much longer than last time, and I didn't really want to proceed because of how tiring the walk looked. Not too long though, off to my side I hear.

"YOU!"

A spear drops to the boards, inches away from me.

Well, the walk can't be _too_ bad, right?

-88-

I can't believe I let myself get caught by Undyne. Here I was so intent on speaking to her and she wants to impale me. I look behind me to check if she was there...worst mistake of my life. THE SPEAR WAS 'THIS' close to hitting me. I duck my head and continue running.

She wasn't making it easy for me, that's for sure. I winded up getting my shoelaces caught in an uneven board. This, of course, caused me to trip and save myself from getting stabbed through the back of my head. Why am I always tripping? It's like a real-life running gag now. I tuck my shoelaces in my loafers and keep running.

Undyne throws a spear, but this time when it hit it didn't disappear. Rather, it sort of froze in mid air and dropped uselessly to the ground. I pick it up in both hands and run. It was pretty heavy, but I managed to carry it. I used it to block the other spears that were coming at me.

At the end, one of Undyne's spears broke a part of the stands holding the boardwalk up. I run a bit faster and use the spear to propel myself over as if I was pole-vaulting. It worked and I reached the other side, leaving the spear to sink into the marsh. There was a large patch of grass at the end that I was able to hide in.

I managed to dodge the last few bit of spears before Undyne stopped. She walked into the grass and thrust her hand down, grabbing something. I look up to see what it was and my mouth dropped open. Monster Kid had already gotten here, and was being held firmly by the head by Undyne.

She looks him over for a moment and sighs. Placing him back down, she stomps off grumbling to herself. I am able to breathe a second sigh of relief. Walking out of the grass, Monster Kid follows, absolutely ecstatic about the events that just happened.

"Yo...did you see that!?" He says,"Undyne just...TOUCHED ME!"

"Kid, that looked like it was painful," I say, sighing.

"I'm never washing my face ever again...!"

"Kid, that's disgusting,"

"If you were standing just a LITTLE bit to the left...!"

"Kid, I would have died..."

"Yo, don't worry!" He says,"I'm sure we'll see her again!"

"Kid, I don't WANNA see her again,"

He runs off, not before tripping, and leaves me behind. I think for a moment on why that spear didn't disappear as soon as it hit the ground. I guess it's what Flowey said. Time is screwed up because of all the RESETs. My guess is that the spear she fired suddenly froze time-wise. That's why it didn't disappear.

I reach another safe area. There was a table with a piece of cheese stuck inside a magical crystal. I take this moment to write down my frightening experience. My wounds heal and I'm perfectly fine.

Look on the bright side, Anna, you survived near death.

...I don't feel any better.

Up ahead, who do I stumble across, but Sans.

"hey, kid, i'm thinking about getting into the telescope business," He says,"it's normally 50000G to use this premium telescope,"

And in the other direction I go...Sans grabs my arm and tugs me back.

" _but,_ since i know you, you can use it for free,"

I think for a bit.

He pranked me twice before.

The telescope is pointed at the wall.

There's nothing to look at on the wall.

Why would Sans give me a useless telescope view...unless...

"Uh, Sans, it's your telescope, YOU take a look,"

"b-but, kid,"

"No buts!" I say,"Take a look and then I will,"

Sans reluctantly looks through the scope, but keeps his eyesocket an inch away. I notice this and tap my foot. He sighs and looks through it completely. When he pulls away, I notice a black circle around his right eyesocket.

"Sans!" I say in fake surprise,"What happened to your eye?"

If looks could kill...

"you realize this means war, right?"

"Oh, very much so," I say,"Until then!"

-88-

I met the Nice Cream Man from earlier. He made punch cards a thing apparently. I managed to get four Nice Creams from him. Although the taste isn't vanilla, I enjoyed the first two. I decided to save the last two for when the time comes.

Along the path, I found more echo flowers of two people talking. It was about the wish thing from earlier. My thoughts on who those people could be are interrupted by Papyrus.

"HELLO! THIS IS PAPYRUS!" He says excitedly,"REMEMBER WHEN I ASKED YOU ABOUT CLOTHES?"

"Yes, I remember it vividly,"

"WELL, THE FRIEND WHO WANTED TO KNOW," He starts,"HER OPINION OF YOU IS VERY...MURDERY,"

Oh I understand CLEARLY...

"I TOLD HER WHAT YOU TOLD ME YOU WERE WEARING,"

"What!?"

"A FADED RIBBON,"

"I KNEW YOU WOULD CHANGE YOUR CLOTHES AFTER HEARING SUCH A SUSPICIOUS QUESTION,"

Papyrus...SHE KNOWS WHAT I LOOK LIKE...

"WELL, BE SEEING YOU!"

-88-

I met Shyren a ways off from where I was originally was with Papyrus. She seemed a bit nervous about singing her song. So, I helped her out. I start to hum a jazz ballad and Shyren follows my melody carefully. As I sing, she becomes more open. Her shots become more precise. Unfortunately, she's too quick and I get hit many times.

As I hum, she adds onto my song, it becomes a symphony of sounds. People gathered to listen to us, cheering us on. Shyren gives a look of happiness and sings the loudest she can. Everyone cheers and celebrates her amazing song. As she and I part ways, we're both left with a smile on our faces.

A while after that, I find a statue that's getting rained on by the water up above. I go to the next room and find an umbrella. I take it back and cover the statue with it. A music box starts playing a small melody when the statue is safe from the rain. I hum along to it before heading to the next room, grabbing another umbrella.

Monster Kid joins me halfway through my journey and we sit and talk about the castle in the distance.

"That's where the King is," He says.

"It's very big," I say.

"Well, it's for the king," He confirms.

Unfortunately, I had to leave him, he helped me climb a ledge, but he couldn't get up. He and I said our vows to meet each other soon. He was another friend I had made in such a quick time. A bright and fun kid that's dependable when you need him.

I reach another safe spot and write in my diary. Heading on forward, I reach another long boardwalk. I continued on and looked about frantically. The floor suddenly started to glow beneath me and I narrowly dodged an attack from a spear. I look below me and there's Undyne, staring at me menacingly. I look forward and back at her.

If you want my SOUL, you'll have to catch me first.

* * *

 **So, yeah, I'm making the friendship/rivalry between Sans and Anna a thing. I'll have fun making it so that they unintentionally put on a show for those that are watching. Also, Anna tripping in practically every chapter is going to be a running gag. Like always, be sure to review and tell me your thoughts on this chapter. Your feedback really helps me make this story much better. Until then!**


	6. Prank War (Oneshot)

**10 Reviews! I've met my mark! This is a oneshot, my first oneshot actually, that I typed up in celebration of my accomplishment. It's all thanks to you guys that review this story. This oneshot has nothing to do with the actual story itself and it takes place somewhere after the monsters come back from the UNDERGROUND. Unlike the other parts of this story, this has absolutely no spoilers whatsoever besides the small part with what happens to Flowey. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy the quirkiness of this chapter and the humor it provides. Until then!**

* * *

HONK!

Anna yelps and falls out of her bed, she looks around confused before resting her eyes on a laughing Sans, who was holding an air-horn.

"That was downright rude!"Anna says with a scowl,"It isn't even noon yet and you're already at it!"

Sans stops his laughing fit to explain an important thing to Anna.

"you remember when we were back in the UNDERGROUND, right?"

"Of course! How could I forget?"

"you remember what I said at Waterfall, right?"

"Uh..."

Sans kneels on the ground and leans towards Anna, his eyesockets completely dark.

"you realize this means war, right?"

Those words suddenly rang a bell with Anna. It was a vow of war they went and made after Sans had failed with his telescope prank. They vowed to continue this rivalry after all was said and done. After they fixed the issue with the timelines collapsing, the monsters went aboveground and lived with Anna's family in their big house. Gerald Sathe and Undyne had expanded it to accommodate everyone. The other monsters had to either build their own or find one that wasn't occupied yet. Those who wanted theirs build, Gerald and Undyne took care of it; they were the most physically strong of the group.

As for the others, it took a small bit of time before Anna's town, Jaliceport, could adjust to their new monster residents. Since they lived right near Mt. Ebott, Sans would occasionally teleport himself and Anna down into the UNDERGROUND where they would go about looking for things to bring back. Usually it was things that people left behind or the occasional Echo Flower. They had to stop bringing Echo Flowers after the incident with Gerald and Undyne.

"I seriously hope Undyne isn't cooking again...she could use a bit of practice," Gerald said, not paying attention to the nearby Echo Flower.

Later on, Undyne walks in and hears the Echo Flower repeating Gerald's monologue. Later on that day, everyone sat around and watched Gerald be berated by Undyne, the latter of which was yelling at the top of their lungs. It put on a bit of a show for the rest of the gang and they all took it as good humor. For Gerald, it was an embarrassing mistake he went and made. Undyne doesn't hesitate to remind Gerald about that if she feels like it. Undyne's skills in the kitchen have been improving, also, getting advice from Gerald and Toriel. Papyrus will usually sit by and take notes on what's going on.

True to Sans' word, Papyrus managed to make something edible, good even! It took him a bit before he realized he shouldn't be so violent with the ingredients he was using like Undyne had taught him. When did he realize this? After the fifth time Gerald and Toriel had to clean the kitchen that was covered in tomatoes and dough...Whenever that would happen, everyone else would go outside and do something else. Flowey wasn't too much of an issue anymore. After Frisk had put him in a flowerpot, Flowey was unable to go anywhere and cause trouble for others. He usually just sits in Frisk's room on a windowsill and is brought out when everyone else is downstairs.

"Wait until noon like last time, okay? Why wake me up so early?" Anna asks.

"because today is the be-all and end-all of our prank rivalry, duh," Sans answers.

"Which means?

"we'll end it today, kid," Sans says to Anna,"we'll see who's better,"

Sans picks Anna up off the floor and they head downstairs in the living room to greet the rest. Gerald was sitting with Asgore, they were drinking tea and chatting about the various flowers around the area. Besides the unique Echo Flower, they brought up Plumeria and Chrysanthemums. Alphys was helping Charles out with his studying, and Toriel was reading Frisk a story. Papyrus and Undyne were practicing cooking in the kitchen. At times, Gerald would come over and give tips to the two of them. Gerald agreed to let the two use his kitchen, but only if they buy their own ingredients. Because he, Charles, and Anna had lived by themselves, Gerald taught himself how to cook. It got to the point where he was able to teach others the basics and helping them find their own way to do things. Gerald sits down with Asgore again before he notices Anna being awake and gives a confused look.

"You're up a bit earlier than usual, something happened?" Gerald asks Anna.

"Sans used an air horn on me. I can't sleep now," Anna replies.

"don't worry, she's fine, trust me," Sans insists.

Gerald nods and turns back to Asgore. Sans and Anna sit at the table and start talking.

"Anything happen while I was asleep?" Anna asks.

"well, it snowed today," Sans said,"if you want, then later we could go out,"

"Why not now?" Anna asks

"i didn't say we couldn't" Sans replies.

Anna nods and heads up to her room and grabs a sweater with a scarf. The sweater was blue and had a black treble clef on it. The scarf was striped blue and white. Toriel had spent some time and knitted these for her. Charles has some as well, but the design is different so that it would fit into what he likes. After Anna was all dressed, she heads back downstairs and heads outdoors with Sans. The morning sun shone on the white snow that covered the forest. Sans turns and heads to the right with Anna as they head back to Mt. Ebott. As they pass Nox Forest reach the cliff and pass the hole that put Anna on her fateful journey, they stand near the edge of the cliff.

Ever since Anna left the UNDERGROUND, the canyon near it has been a tourist attraction for many from everywhere would come to Mt. Ebott to see the shining jewels cover the walls of the canyon. In regards to Mt. Ebott, it became a popular place where people would go to explore the UNDERGROUND. When winter came though, like this year, people don't show up because it's too cold. Anna looks about before being hit in the back of the neck with a snowball. She yelps in surprise and turns around. Sans is using his magic to hold three more above his head. Anna smirks and gathers some snow, albeit dropping it because she got hit with another three snowballs. Instead of trying to hit him, Anna tackles Sans to the ground, covers the inside of his hoodie in snow, and then closes the hoodie over his head. Sans hurriedly removes his hood and shakes the snow out.

"that wasn't fair,kid!" Sans complains.

"Life isn't fair," Anna says.

"don't even start with that!" Sans snaps,"you always use that excuse,"

"You two are still at it?"

Anna and Sans look up to see Charles giving an amused look.

"This happens every Saturday," Charles says.

"Relax, we're ending it today!" Anna responds,"Sans said so earlier,"

"Is this another one of your antics?" Charles accuses.

"nope, just us ending our prank rivalry," Sans replies.

"With the biggest prank war ever!" Anna finishes.

"War, huh? Maybe you should ask Undyne, she likes fighting,"

Anna and Sans turn to face each other.

"You know what this means right?" Anna asks.

"yep," Sans replies.

"Teams?"

"yep,"

-88-

Anna and Sans had assembled their teams. On Anna's side, she, Asgore, and Papyrus all readied themselves. Sans, Frisk, and Undyne are on the other side discussing the battle that was going to unfold. It was Charles' job to watch the players as they go about the game. He would watch to keep the game going. If anything happens, he reports back to the others. The two pranking teams line up and face each other. Alphys, Gerald, and Toriel are between them, giving the rules out.

"The area ranges from Mt. Ebott to here," Alphys explains,"This means you have the entire forest to run around in,"

"There's no hiding inside of the house, okay? I don't want to have to replace the furniture again because you guys got crazy," Gerald warns.

"Also, if any of you get injured, please come to me, alright?" Toriel asks.

"I hope you guys have stored up things to use, because you are NOT spending _my_ money," Gerald says.

It only took a few more moments of talking before the game was on.

"GO!"

The two teams run in opposite directions and it begins.

Alphys watches the two teams run off before turning to Gerald, who was smirking.

"W-why'd you agree to this anyway Gerald? T-this isn't like you," Alphys questions.

"I just want it to end," Gerald says,"Remember what happened _last_ Saturday?"

"O-oh..." Alphys replies.

Sans and Anna's weekly battles were mostly harmless. They didn't cause much trouble until last Saturday. The rundown of it was that the entire house had been wrecked and Gerald winded up giving away most of the money he had on hand and some in his banking account. This final showdown was an opportunity for Gerald to see it all end. With today having that showdown, there was no way he was going to miss it.

"I hope it wasn't too much of an issue," Toriel says,"They don't normally cause this much trouble,"

Gerald just grumbles to himself, still sour about that fateful day.

-88-

"Okay, the rules say that we can use anything we've got stored up or have on hand. Luckily, I've prepared tons of things to set off WAY before this day started," Anna explains.

"WHICH WOULD BE...?" Papyrus asks.

"Might one of them be that odd-looking thing?" Asgore asks.

His finger was directed towards a pulley that was hidden in a bush a ways off from the main household. Very thin strings were holding up fake snow-covered grass.

"That's one of them, good eye Asgore!"

"BUT, WHY ARE THE STRINGS SO THIN?" Papyrus asks,"THEY LOOK FLIMSY!"

"The thinner they are, the harder they are to see," Anna explains.

"That makes sense!" Says Asgore,"So...is it some sort of pitfall?"

Anna nods in confirmation. She looks behind Asgore and she gives a look of fright.

"Asgore, move to the right a bit!"

Asgore complies, albeit confused. A burst of water hits the ground and he yelps. Papyrus walks over and picks up what held the water.

Rubber.

That meant a water balloon.

Anna's eyes widened and looks up at the trees. She sees a shadow and two others move among them all. They'd already been found.

"EVERYBODY, MOVE!" yells Anna.

More water balloons begin pelting the ground and the three victims of the attack begin to spread off in different directions. Sans watches them all run off in their individual directions and gives a thumbs up to his teammates. Frisk heads after Asgore, Undyne after Papyrus, and Sans after Anna.

Asgore headed towards Mt. Ebott, forgetting that there was just a canyon past the mountain itself. There was no way he was going to jump down, so when he reached the edge, he turned around and saw Frisk. Frisk just gives them the same stoic look as always, but Asgore looked around for any way out. The only escape was behind Frisk and he had it blocked. Asgore almost accepted his fate, but suddenly, an idea rang out in his head. He hurriedly casts fire magic at Frisk and like expected, Frisk dodges, although surprised. Asgore keeps up the pace with his right hand, but grabs a huge mound of snow with the other. Frisk looked confused and actually began to wonder if Asgore was trying to kill them.

Asgore, having nearly completed his plan, stops his fire magic and finishes up his mound of snow. He places it on the ground as a gigantic snowball and kicks it forward. Frisk, being too occupied with the fire magic to react, is snatched up by the snowball as it rolls off Mt. Ebott. Frisk yells in fright as the snowball speeds up and starts to head into the forest.

"Sorry, Frisk!" Asgore yells with both hands, sympathetically,"Maybe after this we can have some Golden Flower Tea!"

Asgore looks around for a moment before realizing that he should get going. So, he runs down off the mountain, following the rolling snowball.

-88-

Undyne was chasing Papyrus from in the trees above. Papyrus forms a snowball and throws it at Undyne, hoping to get her to slow down from it. She just dodges and moves faster, to Papyrus' misfortune.

"If you stop moving, I'll go easy on ya!" Undyne says.

Papyrus just keeps running and flees into the brush. Pushing the leaves aside, Papyrus scans the area for any sign of Undyne. Unfortunately, Undyne was missing from the area, but Papyrus hoped that she had just lost his trail.

"Who are ya lookin' for?" a voice asks.

"FOR UNDYNE," Papyrus answers,"WE'RE IN A PRANK WAR RIGHT N-,"

Papyrus turns to see Undyne hanging by her legs from a tree. She taps him on the skull for a moment before he runs off yelling at the top of his lungs. Undyne pulls herself back into the trees and follows Papyrus. She was slowly closing in on him before he disappeared with a loud yelp of surprise. Confused, Undyne looks around a small bit before realizing he was in a hole. She notices a pulley nearby, one that she didn't set. The thought sunk in before she started laughing mockingly.

"You fell into your own trap!" She says,"How does that even happen?"

"I DON'T KNOW," Papyrus answers with a shrug.

Undyne laughs a bit harder before being snatched up in a precariously rolling snowball. She starts yelling in fright at the top of her lungs. Asgore looks down in the hole at Papyrus before speaking.

"So, you got caught?" Asgore asks,"This was our trap for _them_!"

"I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, NEVER GET CAUGHT!" Papyrus says proudly,"...EXCEPT FOR TODAY,"

Asgore chuckles a bit before chasing after the snowball again. Papyrus sits in the hole and looks up a bit for anyone to come by and help him out of the hole.

...Nope...

He sits to himself before singing.

"100 CLUSTERS OF BONES ON THE WALL! 100 CLUSTERS OF BONES! YOU TAKE ONE DOWN, AND PASS IT AROUND! 99 CLUSTERS OF BONES ON THE WALL!"

Anna looks about for any sort of traps before running through the forest. She had something special set up in the forest center, so she decided to head in that direction. While she was heading there, she trips over a log before stopping right before she hit the path of a giant rolling snowball. She picks herself up and stares wide-eyed at the mass of it, it was twice the size of Asgore. Asgore himself was running his best after it, but notices Anna.

"What in the world did you do?" Anna asks Asgore.

"I improvised!" Asgore says,"Also, I think Undyne and Frisk are out of the game,"

"Nice job!"

"Thanks!" says Asgore,"Papyrus got caught too,"

"By what?"

"The pitfall..."

"HOW!?"

"No idea,"

Asgore returns back to chasing after the snowball, huffing along the way.

-88-

"Got any fives?" Asks Gerald.

"Go fish..." Says Alphys.

Toriel sits silently and stares at her cards for a bit. Gerald and Alphys notice her gaze and start thinking of what sort of plan she has. That didn't last too long before her eyes got wide and she slams her deck on the table, revealing four cards with the number seven.

"SERIOUSLY!?" Alphys and Gerald yell in exasperation.

"S-She's totally cheating," Alphy's says.

Flowey was watching them play their card game before noticing a gigantic snowball running towards them. He screams in fright and attracts the attention of the others, who notice what he's reacting to. He's picked up in his flowerpot by Toriel, who hurries off to the side. Alphys gives a look of fright and ducks under the table. Gerald looks towards the snowball and runs out in its path. He puts his large arms out and slows the snowball down. The size of it caused him to be pushed a small bit before he stops with it completely. Asgore reaches the house where the snowball is at and looks at Gerald. The two of them dig out Frisk and Undyne and put them indoors because they were shivering. Toriel hands Asgore a coat and he gladly puts it on.

"Where are the others?" Toriel asks.

"Out there somewhere," Asgore replies.

-88-

Anna looks about before continuing towards the center of the forest. A giant mound of snow nearly hits her, but she stops too sharp before hitting it and trips from the momentum. She pulls her face out of the snow and looks upwards to see Sans in the trees, who used his magic to gather all the snow.

"where'ya goin'?"

Anna picks herself up off the ground and begins running faster with Sans in pursuit. She dodges the snowballs that were lobbed her way and ducks behind a tree. The shed wasn't too far and she knew it. All she had to do was make her way there without being spotted. Moving slowly, she sticks to the shadows of the trees as she moves. There was an occasional rustle of the tree leaves, but no sign of Sans. Anna resolves to finally peeking out from behind the tree, but covers herself as a snowball barely misses her.

She finally manages to reach the center of the forest and sees a rope dangling from the trees above.

"caught you,"

Anna turns around and dodges an incoming snowball. Sans' sudden teleporting made it hard for her to hit him. Just as she was about to give up, Sans steps on a certain spot on the ground. Anna sees this and runs forward, pulling the rope. A bucket above tips over and covers Sans from skull to toe in ketchup. Sans stands there, shaken from the sudden trick.

"GOT you!" Anna says.

"jokes on you, i love ketchup," says Sans.

Sans grin grows a bit bigger and he teleports in front of Anna and wraps his arms around her, getting her covered in ketchup. Anna tries to push Sans away, but Sans has too much of an iron grip.

"Let me go!"

"no way, kid,"

Anna struggles so much that she and Sans both fall to the ground. They sit for a bit before bursting out laughing. Sans gets up and says to Anna.

"let's get back home,"

-88-

It was a while before the others saw Anna and Sans walk out of the forest. Gerald and Toriel's mouths drop while Undyne starts laughing. Alphys just stares, shocked and Asgore just shakes his head, smiling. Flowey laughs and Frisk grins a small bit.

"So...who won?" Flowey asks.

"I think we can call this a tie,"

They all get a good laugh out of the situation before Frisk speaks up.

"Hey," they say,"Where's Papyrus?"

They all pause for a bit to ponder what Frisk asked.

"Oh no..." They all say.

"1 CLUSTER OF BONES OF BONES ON THE WALL, ONE CLUSTERS OF BONES! YOU TAKE IT DOWN AND PASS IT AROUND, NO MORE CLUSTERS OF BONES ON THE WALL!"

Papyrus looks up and sees that the night sky is starting to show itself.

"HEY GUYS! WHO WON?" he asks.

* * *

 **So...how'd I do? I kept my 3,000 word goal like always. I wanted to make something to thank you guys for reading my story and giving me motivation to continue making it. Like I said before, this is my most popular story. I honestly had no idea so many people would come across it and read it. I tried to provide the humor that the Undertale game had, but I don't know if the kind I put in fit the bill. It probably didn't but I really enjoyed making this special little oneshot. I'll have the next part of the story out soon. Until then!**


	7. Keeping Pace

**Oh here we go! I ended the last chapter with a cliffhanger to get you guys all pumped up for this chapter. Also, I have a special bit of backstory for one of the many minor characters in the game. He is a personal favorite of mine, see if you can figure it out. Until then...please stop reading this text.**

 **BlueAhoge - Aaron is creepy? Yeah, I agree. It sort of weirded me out how he ended every sentence with a wink. I think you'll find him to be a bit more likeable after a while, though. Also, yes, Undyne says an anime quote in this chapter. Tell me what anime it's from.**

 **Mockstevenh - I read your review and cried a bit. It wasn't heavy weeping tho. It was a small tear. Your review woke me up from my sleep XD. I'm so glad you enjoyed the story because it's something I enjoy doing. I want to make this story enjoyable for me and others.**

 **STOP READING THIS TEXT! THE STORY IS DOWN THERE!**

* * *

I ran throughout the boardwalk dodging the attacks from Undyne's spears. The place was practically a labyrinth. Whoever made this has reaaallly bad design. Some of the paths were narrow and lead to dead ends. I got trapped at one of them and took damage from the spears; she hit like a truck. As I went along the boardwalk, her attacks slowly got faster and faster before she slowed down. I reached a long path on the boardwalk and continued down it. Dead end, oh well...I can always just-

Undyne was standing at the other end of the boardwalk, staring me down. She says nothing, but cuts the boardwalk in half and leaves me to fall with it. I shoot downwards screaming for my life. As I hit the ground, my vision darkens.

"It sounds like it came from over here..." I hear a voice say,"Oh! You've fallen down, haven't you..."

"Are you okay? Here, get up..."

"...Chara, huh? That's a nice name," It speaks,"My name is..."

I don't hear the rest because I wake up too early to hear the end. I don't know how fast my heart was beating when I woke up. All I know is that I definitely injured something. Luckily, another patch of golden flowers just so happens to be around to break my fall again. I look around to see where I wound up. There were broken pieces of boards on the ground. Garbage littered the area and broken pieces of TVs showed up here and there. I must have landed in some sort of garbage dump.

I pat myself down to see if I dropped anything. Well, luckily I lost no-

Where's my diary? I can't SAVE without it. Where'd it go? Maybe it's among the garbage somewhere. Though most of it was unknown to me, I did see some Tupperware containers among other brands I've seen so far. I reached a spot where the waterfall was coming in from the ceiling and pouring down. The water was waist-deep.

There was a cooler among the garbage that had Astronaut Food inside. I decide to take it because, who knows? There was a dummy, much like the one in the RUINS, standing there all on its lonesome. I look at it for a second. It's lifeless eyes stare back at me as I scan the room for anyone. Getting bored, I tap it a bit roughly with my fist. I expected to be indifferent, but sudden guilt filled me. I started to walk off and get the guilt out of my system.

I didn't walk to far before I heard wood creeking slightly. I turn around and see the dummy come to life. It shakes for a second and falls below the water before coming up behind me. I fall backwards into the water and stare at it as it looks down at me. It looked angry and I don't know why. Unless that small tap had upset it.

"FOOL!" it says,"You think you can hurt ME?"

I wasn't trying to, but okay...

"I am a ghost that lives inside a DUMMY," it says,"My cousin used to live inside a DUMMY, too. Until...YOU CAME ALONG!"

"I'm sorry, but what do y-

"DON'T INTERRUPT!" it snaps,"When you talked to them, they thought they were in for a nice chat..."

Well, I really only said a sentence, so it wasn't much of a chat...

"But the things you SAID...!" it says,"Horrible. Shocking! UNBELIEVABLE!"

I had no idea that dummy's were so offended by someone asking them how long they've been in a room. Hopefully this is the only dummy out there that makes rash decisions when first meeting someone. Come to think of it, since this is just nonsense spouting off the top of his...whatever he has, has he been waiting all this time to yell at somebody for no reason? That's sad.

"It spooked them right out of their dummy!" it said,"HUMAN! I'll scare your SOUL out of your body!"

Wait...so this entire dialogue was just him wanting to take my soul?...That's sad. The dummy shakes, turns red, and a FIGHT starts. My SOUL appears and I'm trapped because of low range in battle. I didn't heal before this battle and I'm soaked. My health isn't doing too good from this ordeal.

"H-hey listen up a sec. M-Maybe this is all just a b-big misunderstanding," I'm stuttering from the shivering cold water.

"Foolish. Foolish! FOOLISH!" the dummy yells.

Smaller dummies began to surround me and fire magic at me. I dodge and some of the magic flies off and hits the dummy's body.

"OWWWW, you DUMMIES!," It says,"Watch where you're aiming your **MAGIC** attacks!"

I blinked at the dummy and it seemed to have realized its mistake. It hurriedly begins to try and act like nothing happened.

"Hey! You! Forget I said anything about **MAGIC** ," it says.

"I'm sorry Mr. Ghost, but you've dragged me into this battle," I reply,"If you won't let me go, I'll have to make sure you leave on your own!"

It looked nervous after it heard me speak to it. Rightfully so, I've found its weak point. This makes me wonder if that fateful moment didn't happen, would I still be here fighting this thing.

"I'll defeat you and steal your SOUL," it says.

More dummies cast magic at me. The size of it wasn't too big, but it wasn't until they swarmed me that things started to get difficult. I was getting hit from all sides. Fortunately, the dummy got hit by the stray magic attacks.

"I'll stand in the window of a fancy store!"

That is an odd desire, but considering that he was a dummy, it makes sense...sort of...IF that makes any sense.

After a few more hits on the dummy's body, it starts to move around and make itself hard to get hits on.

"THEN EVERYTHING I WANT WILL BE MINE!"

How do you go from standing in a window, to getting everything your heart desires. It doesn't work that way. You have to earn your way to the things you want. You don't just waltz in and get things for free. Of course, this makes me the biggest hypocrite because of the Butterscotch-Cinnamon Pie and Sans' jacket he temporarily gave me.

"Huh? Yeah I guess then I'll avenge my cousin," it says,"What was their name again?"

What? It said that in the most uninterested way. If it has a cousin, why did it sound like it cared so little about them? Does it have a cousin?

Eventually the dummy got hit so many times that cotton started to fall from them. It would sometimes hide just out of the magic attack's reach or it would continuously change positions during the dummys' attack.

"HEY GUYS!" the dummy calls out,"Dummies. Dummies! DUMMIES!"

The smaller dummies that attacked me earlier all gather around to hear what the big one has to say. They stand there and listen to the big one berate them.

"Remember how I said NOT to shoot at me?" it says,"Well...FAILURES! YOU'RE FIRED! YOU'RE ALL BEING REPLACED!"

The Mad Dummy lets out a cackle as the regular dummies are replaced with robotic ones right before me. I expected a ramp up in difficulty and I wasn't wrong. The rocket attacks they shot homed in on me. Luckily, they stopped homing in after a while. I used that chance to launch them at the Mad Dummy.

"N...no way!" It says to itself, finally,"These guys are even WORSE than the other guys!"

I guess realization after five turns of hit trading sort of got the message to him. I took this moment to eat the Astronaut Food and kept up the battle.

"Who cares. Who cares! WHO CARES!" it says, its body parts sporadically flying everywhere,"I DON'T NEED FRIENDS! I'VE GOT KNIVES!"

A knife appears right near it and it's pointed in my direction. This dummy suddenly just became one of the top ten enemies I never want to see again. Luckily, the knife was slower than the rockets, and it appears that the Mad Dummy only had one of those. The battle worked out in my favor because Napstablook appeared and scared the dummy off with its tears. It said they felt like acid rain.

"...sorry, i interrupted you, didn't i?" Nap says,"as soon as i came over, your friend immediately left,"

"Oh, he's no friend of mine, believe me!" I say.

"he stopped being your friend because i appeared...oh-no...you guys looked like you were having fun...i just wanted to say hi...oh-no..." Napstablook says solemnly.

"Nap!" I exclaim,"You saved my life! Thank you so much!"

I run up to hug him, but fall through. Oh right, ghosts are incorporeal beings.

"...sorry about that," Nap says.

"You have NOTHING to apologize for," I say,"Thank you!"

"...heh..." Nap laughs a bit and fades away slowly.

I run out of the garbage dump and hear music playing. It sounds a bit eerie. I see that creeper horse-fish Aaron appear and put on a look of fright. Woshua comes by and looks around, confused.

"...what the HECK is that music?" Woshua says.

"I-I DUNNO, DUDE BUT IT'S SPOOKIN ME OUT ;)" Aaron replies.

Who knew that the big tough guy is the fraidy-cat.

"...this is worse than Shyren,"

"Hey! Shyren was just afraid! She was an amazing singer once she got over her nervousness!" I snap.

They turn in my direction and seem to remember who I am. Aaron calms down just a tiny bit and flexes for me before putting on that frightful look once the music got louder.

"No way, Shyren is way less scary ;)" Aaron says.

"...if you're so scared, why do you keep winking?" Woshua asks.

"I'D LIKE TO KNOW TOO! YA CREEP!" I yell.

"THESE ARE WINKS OF FEAR ;)" Aaron claims.

"Forget it. This beat is too...filthy," Woshua says, walking off.

Of course...

"Wosh! Wait! Don't leave me ;)" Aaron pleads,"Is this creepy music my punishment for being creepy? ;)"

"Maybe so! You should go and vow to never be creepy again!"

"Please..stop...I'll never creep again...Wahhhhh! ;)"

I was about to walk off before realizing that Aaron dropped my diary. THAT LITTLE- I run to pick it up and scan the pages. It's untouched except for a note at the end.

'Sorry for scaring you earlier. I hope keeping your diary safe from others is my way of asking to be friends with you,'

I suddenly feel bad for treating Aaron like dirt earlier. He was well meaning the entire time, but he accidentally caused me to keep my distance from him. Maybe if I see him again, we can make amends. I write down in my diary what I experienced with the dummy and my wounds are healed. I am also perfectly dry after I finish writing.

I walk off to the left remembering that...interesting situation with Aaron and Woshua. I stumble on what looks like a giant fish head. I assume this is Undyne's house. I look off towards the left and see the Mad Dummy from before on a mat. Me, not wanting to anger him again, ignore him and continue on my merry way.

I reach the next area and the place looks a slight bit darker than last time. There was a shiny path that I followed through the marsh. It seemed to be the only safe way because the other paths were either too faulty or were submerged in water.

As I'm walking I'm thrust into a fight with...a perfectly normal looking cat...what gives? Where's the one-eyed monster or animal hybrid? The only thing that gives me unease me about it is the fact that it's vibrating very intensely.

"Uh...hello?" I greet the animal.

"h0I! i'm tEMMIE!"

Okay...I'm not sure how to explain how that sounded. I can only say that there were dips in volume and pitch. It's like the internet manifested into an animal and slapped me in the face with dialogue...and considering what I've been through that is probably an attack.

I was wrong though...I got much worse. This cat grows gigantic legs and starts heading towards me. I had to stay directly under it otherwise I would take unneeded damage. It wasn't too difficult, but Temmie was a bit sporadic with her movements. It then tries to pounce on me and hug me, but I just denied it.

The next room darkened pretty clearly and it was hard to see where I was going. I stumble across a crystal and place my hands on it. It lights up the room and lets me see the path out of here. I hurriedly try and run towards the exit, but the path darkens again. I feel my way around with my hand before something grabs onto the end of it. It was another hand.

I scream and try to pull away from it, but it held on.

"Just listen to me okay?" it says,"I'll help you out of here,"

It was a male voice that I've heard before. I can't quite put my finger down on it before it speaks up again.

"I hope you're okay with me helping you out...you seemed pretty scared of me back there,"

"A-Aaron?"

It laughs a tiny bit.

"Yep,"

I sit in silence and let him guide me through the maze. I take this opportunity to show my gratitude to him.

"Aaron, I'd like to thank you for keeping my diary safe. It's something special that I can't afford to lose,"

"Well, I wanted to apologize for our first encounter with each other. I scared you off right?" Aaron asks,"Well, seeing your diary soaking wet like that gave me an idea, I'd hang onto it until you woke up and found me again!"

"You didn't take it from me while I was out cold, right?" I ask, just to be sure.

"No, I found it in the garbage dump, left on its own. It was near that frightening dummy," Aaron says,"It took a lot of willpower to get it. I thought that thing was going to come to life and attack me!"

His tone changes when he speaks of the dummy. I trip and nearly fall, but Aaron catches me and continues leading me through the marsh.

"Why do you act the way you do?" I ask him,"Around other people I mean, sorry if that was confusing,"

"It's not," Aaron replies,"I act that way to appear as someone confident. I get frightened easily of some things. They're usually stuff I can't explain or seem eerie to me,"

"Is that why that music scared you earlier?"

"Yeah," He answers, shyly,"Nobody likes a coward, so I act the opposite of that,"

"Well, you don't have to pretend around me, okay? I've gotten to know you a lot better, so...you can be yourself!" I say to him.

"T-thanks...Anna,"

"You know my name?"

"It's in the first page of your diary,"

"You read my diary!?"

Aaron laughs a bit loudly.

"Nope, Wosh told me," He says.

We reached the end of the little maze. Aaron touches a crystal and the room lights up. He waves to me and dives back under the water again and swims away, not winking once. I wave to him before realizing something.

"...WAIT A SECOND! WOSHUA HAS NO IDEA WHAT MY NAME IS!" I yell.

Oh well...Aaron turned out to be a nice guy. I wonder if more people are like him. Do they hide behind a certain personality just to appear better to other people. I sympathize with people like that. They're lying to themselves, and that's the worst kind of lie.

On my way through the marsh, I stumble across more echo flowers. They're about the two voices telling each other what their wishes were. Laughs were passed around, and I learned a bit more about monster history in the UNDERGROUND I reach a narrow bridge and cross it, making sure to step over the uneven board in it.

"Yo!" I hear from behind me.

I turn and Monster Kid runs up to me. He walks up to me a bit slowly and has a sort of frown on his face. Something seems to be bothering him.

"...Anything wrong?"

He pauses for a moment and speaks.

"Yo, I know I'm not supposed to be here, but...I wanna ask you something,"

"Ask away, Kid,"

"...Man, I've never had to ask anyone this before," He says, laughing,"Yo...You're human, right?"

"Y-Yeah?" I answer,"Something the matter?"

"Man, I knew it...well, I know it now, I mean," He says,"Undyne told me, um, "stay away from that human,"

I frown at what I hear. Undyne seriously thinks I'm a threat even though I haven't hurt anyone since I fell down here. Sure, there was that small tap on the dummy, but that hardly counts as INTENDING to hurt him, right?

"So, like, um...I guess that makes us enemies or something," He says,"But I kinda stink at that,"

Figures, he's way to nice to swear to be an enemy to someone. Who knows, maybe he's one of those people who hide something behind a different personality. I doubt it though.

"Yo, say something mean so I can hate you?"

"I'm sorry, Kid, I've never been that good with insults, most of them people have already heard from me," I say,"That's why they take it so lightly, because I can't think of anything better to say,"

"Yo, what? So I have to do it?"

"I-I guess..."

"Here goes nothing...Yo, I...I hate your guts," he says,"Man, I...I'm such a turd...I'm...I'm gonna go home now,"

It hurt, but for a different reason. It hurt because this kid has to hate someone he once called a friend. I remember that one time I got he and I an umbrella and we walked through the rain together. But now, he has to throw all that away and leave me behind.

Monster Kid slowly backs away before running off. He didn't get far because he tripped (surprised it wasn't me) and fell off the bridge.

"NO!"

"Yo, w-w-wait! Help! I tripped!"

I looked over the edge and breathed a sigh of relief. He was okay...as okay a kid hanging from a ledge over a deep bottom could be.

I hear heavy thuds on the bridge. It sounded like metal. That could only mean that-

Yep, Undyne.

She stands at the edge of the bridge, staring me down. I pay her no mind and run to Monster Kid's aid. I pull him up from the ledge and hug him tight. I almost lost another friend I really liked. Being in the UNDERGROUND changes you in some frightening, but powerful ways.

Monster Kid looks at the oncoming Undyne and steps forward, unafraid of her.

"Y...y...yo...dude..." He starts,"If...If y-you wanna hurt my friend...You're gonna have to get through me, first,"

Undyne backs away before walking off in silence.

"Kid, that was amazing!" I say in excitement.

"T-thanks..." He responds,"...She's gone...Yo, you really saved my skin,"

"No problem, Kid,"

"Guess being enemies was just a nice thought, haha," He says,"We'll just have to be friends instead...man, I should REALLY go home...I bet my parents are worried sick about me!"

Wait, this kid has-well duh. I just sorta figured they didn't because this guy would have to have the absolute worst parents to have come out this far and them not have come looking yet.

"Later, dude," He says.

"Bye, Kid!" I wave to him.

Monster Kid runs off without tripping at all. I turn around and head in the opposite direction of Undyne. I cross another bridge and reach a small cave. I was about to head inside before I heard a voice call out.

"Seven,"

I look upwards and see Undyne standing on the top of the cave, facing away from me. She didn't move an inch, and her voice echoed throughout the area.

"Seven human souls, and King ASGORE will become a god," she says.

Undyne faces east and looks out at all of the rocks surrounding the area.

"Six," She says,"That's how many we have collected thus far,"

She finally looks at me, unmoved and intimidating.

"Understand?" Undyne asks,"Through your seventh and final soul, this world will be transformed,"

So they want to take my soul and give it to King Asgore? I was right about what Papyrus had said earlier. This doesn't look good for me.

"First, however, as is customary for those that make it this far..." She starts,"I shall tell you the tragic tale of our people,"

So, I'm basically learning again what I read on those signs earlier? She is really going to do this to me?

"It all started, long ago," Undyne begins.

She's seriously doing it...

"No, you know what?"

Oh wait, she's not gonna do that? Undyne is more forgiving than I had thought!

"SCREW IT! WHY SHOULD I TELL THAT STORY WHEN YOU'RE ABOUT TO DIE!? NGAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

I cover my ears and close my eyes from the sudden scream. I look up and she is facing away from me again, her helmet is off of her head. As she turns, her right eye glows brightly in the darkness surrounding us.

"YOU!" Undyne says,"You're standing in the way of everybody's hopes and dreams! Alphy's history books made me think humans were cool...with their giant robots and flowery swordswomen,"

Wait...what? That sounds like something COMPLETELY out of a cartoon...

"BUT YOU?" She says,"You're just a coward! Hiding behind that kid so you could run away from me again!"

I remember Aaron's words from earlier. 'Nobody likes a coward, so I act the opposite of that'.

"I may be a coward, but I guarantee that I'll go farther than you will any day!" I proclaim.

"Really? What about your goody-two-shoes shtick?" She asks,"You know what would be more valuable to everyone? IF YOU WERE DEAD!"

Even if they break the barrier with my SOUL, the war is just going to happen again aboveground! They're heading into a second war without any sort of preparation. They're looking to the King for hope, but they haven't even thought of what might happen.

"Your life is all that stands between us and our freedom!" she says,"Right now, I can feel everyone's hearts pounding together!"

"You think you're so tough behind numbers? One pure heart can beat a million empty ones!" I say out loud,"What if another war starts after your freedom?"

"I'll leave tomorrow's problems to tomorrow's me," she says,"Let's end this, right here, right now. Step forward when you're ready and I'll show you how determined monsters can be,"

I open my diary and write down a summary of Undyne's speech. The world SAVES and I look up at her. We stare each other down for a moment before yelling out.

"HERE WE GO!"

The battle was on.

* * *

 **Thanks for putting up with my wordy chapters! If you can't tell, I'm giving some of the enemies a bit of backstory. I felt that starting off with Aaron would be a good idea since he can come across as creepy. Seeing him frightened for that small period of time in the game made me think 'why does he hide that part of himself?'.**

 **There will be some more cases like his spread throughout the story. Like always, be sure to review and give me feedback if you liked this chapter or if there's something you felt wrong with it. It really helps to improve my stories. Until then!**


	8. A Truce

**The battle is finally on between Anna and Undyne! Like all the other chapters, this one is about the same length. I uploaded this later than usual mostly because I've been dealing with my EOC. That means End of Course. It was a test I took today for Algebra I. Yesterday I took my Political Science final. I PASSED POLI SCI GUYS! Anyways...enough about my personal life. Please enjoy the continuation of this story! Until then!**

 **...You can stop reading the text now...**

* * *

As I step into battle, I notice Undyne change my maroon colored SOUL into a green one.

"En guarde!" she yells.

I watch her attacks come in, but realize that I can't move. Instead, a shield appears in front of me and I use it to block the oncoming attacks. So, I have another battle style to get used to. This one at least seems easy like the blue attack Papyrus used on me.

"As long as you're **GREEN** you **CAN'T ESCAPE**!" She says,"Unless you **learn to face danger head-on**...you won't last a SECOND against ME!"

So no running is basically what I'm hearing. Alright then, I've never run from a battle anyhow. They usually always play themselves out until something completely unexpected or impossible happens. But to be fair, in the UNDERGROUND, things I consider abnormal are probably just another Tuesday to monsters.

"Hey, Undyne!" I yell,"I'm starting to fall asleep over here!"

Undyne speeds up her attacks and manages to hit me twice. Like expected, it feels like I'm being crushed in a wrestling match with Dad. Now if I ever wanna know how excruciating pain feels like, this gets first place!

Undyne draws her finger across her neck. Too bad for her, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon.

"For years, we've dreamed of a happy ending," Undyne says,"And now, sunlight is just within our reach!"

"My death won't solve anything!" I protest,"You'll just drag yourself into another war! And what will happen then? You've already used the SOULs to get out! There are no more!"

I'm lying, though. Frisk is still alive, hopefully.

"NGAHHH! Enough warming up!"

A flurry of bullets fly in my direction. I block most of them, but fail to defend against them all. She turns my heart back to maroon and I dodge an incoming spear. What did she say again? If I was GREEN then I couldn't escape? But I can move now so...I run straight at Undyne and slide between her legs. I jump up and start running into the cave. I run about halfway through before Undyne catches me again and I'm in battle with her again. I don't FIGHT and let her take her turn.

"Mercy! Ha!" She taunts,"I still can't believe YOU want to spare ME!"

"I don't want to fight you!" I said,"I'm trying to get back to my family aboveground! Why don't you make this easier for both of us and stop trying to kill me!"

"But even if I spared YOU..." She says,"No human has EVER made it past ASGORE!"

Just because the others never made it doesn't mean I won't! I'll show her just how strong I am!

"Honestly, killing you now is an act of mercy..." she says,"So STOP being so damn resilient! What the hell are humans made out of!?"

"Well," I start,"Flesh, water, and bones...I thought it was pretty ob-"

"THAT WAS A RHETORICAL QUESTION!" she snaps.

"Oh..." I say, quietly.

"Anyone else would be DEAD by now!" Undyne says,"Alphys told me humans were determined...I see now what she meant by that!"

"Well you're patterns are really easy to follow," I explain.

Maybe I shouldn't have said that. She got angry and suplexed a boulder.

"Why'd you do that?" I ask, confused.

"BECAUSE I CAN!" she retorts.

She launches another attacks. Some of them looked normal enough, but there were a few that switched directions. I had to keep moving constantly and watch for where the arrows were pointing. I wasn't perfect with it, but I was still hanging on with low HP.

"But I'm determined too!" Undyne claims,"Determined to end this RIGHT NOW!"

Still alive. I sit behind my shield wearing a smug look.

"...RIGHT NOW!" She says again.

Stiiiilll aliiiiive.

"...RIGHT...NOW!" she says AGAIN.

Alive and still standing here. Well, rather more like sitting. I'm literally sitting on the ground blocking the oncoming moves. They've gotten so predictable now. She laughs a tiny bit and I block slower moving bullets.

"NGAHHH!"

"I'm sorry did I hit a nerve?"

"DIE ALREADY YOU LITTLE BRAT!"

All I had to do was move my shield counterclockwise. It was a bit too easy for my taste. I start to feel a bit bad for Undyne. Her eye is twitching involuntarily, and she's clenching her fist awfully tight. I choose to SPARE her, and watch what she does next.

"I WILL NEVER TAKE MERCY FROM THE LIKES OF YOU!" she yells.

"Suit yourself," I sigh.

Spears began to come from the ground, but they were too slow to land a hit on me. I SPARE again...

"YOU! WILL! NEVER! SPARE! ME!" She says.

"I've already done it more than five times now," I claim,"You're outta luck,"

Another boulder is suplexed. I tilt my head to the side and a piece of rock flies past me. Undyne starts to hyperventilate and when the rock hit the wall and caused dirt to fly, I decide to take off. I stretch for a bit before running past Undyne. She hears my footsteps and runs off after me like an enraged bear. In battle I am, again.

"STOP RUNNING AWAY!" she screams.

"No," I say,"I'm outta here,"

Running...running...There's a sign that says, "WELCOME TO HOTLAND,". I read it for a bit before I notice Undyne.

"COME BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE PUNK!" she yells.

If this were a cartoon, I'm sure steam would be coming out of her ears. She's so angry that she's leaving small holes in the ground as she stomps after me. My phone starts ringing and I begrudgingly answer it, still running.

"HEY!" A loud voice says,"WHAT'S UP!?"

"Papyrus..."I say urgently.

"I WAS JUST THINKING..." He says,"YOU, ME, AND UNDYNE SHOULD ALL HANG OUT SOMETIME!"

"You know what Paps? That sounds great! But now is really not the time fo-"

"I THINK YOU WOULD MAKE GREAT PALS!"

If he only knew...

"LET'S MEET UP AT-"

"PAPYRUS! LATER, OKAY?"

"OKAY, HUMAN!"

Click...

I continue to run and finally make it to a place filled with lava. This must be Hotland. Off to the left, I notice Sans snoring away at his watch post. I slow down my feet again because I realize Undyne wasn't flying after me anymore. That moment of silence ended when a spear flies and lands directly in front of me. I trip over it and watch as another spear breaks one of the things holding the bridge in place. Half of the bridge tips over and I'm left hanging on for dear life.

More spears come after me and I scream, climbing sideways along the bridge to dodge them. Sans wakes up and sees me hanging off the bridge and gives a frightened look. As one last spear knocks me off the bridge, I fall before a blue light engulfs me. I'm carried to the other side of the bridge, alive and well.

Sans blocks a spear heading towards me, using his bones before waving and teleporting away so Undyne wouldn't know who saved me. Undyne lets out and enraged yell before breathing heavily and collapsing. I manage to put the bridge back in place and walk over to her, against my better judgement.

"Armor... so... hot..." she says,"But I can't...give up...

I look around for a water source before noticing a water cooler right on the other side of the bridge. I gather some water in a cup and walk back over to Undyne. She moves a small bit and I flinch. Taking a deep breath, I dump the water on her. She moves for a bit before springing back to life.

She gets a look of the room before her eyes rested on me holding the cup I had. The angry look she had earlier was all but drained from her now. She walks off later, leaving me behind. On the other hand, the cup I had evaporated. How does that even work?

-88-

I don't know what the heck convinced me, but I decided to go back to Undyne's place. Papyrus was outside her house, waiting for me.

"OHO!" He beams,"THE HUMAN ARRIVES!"

"Hi, Papyrus," I say quietly.

"ARE YOU READY TO HANG OUT WITH UNDYNE?" He asks.

"Sure!" I try and put on my best smile. Papyrus seems to buy it and he knocks on the door.

"PSST!" he tries to whisper,"MAKE SURE TO GIVE HER THIS!"

He holds out a wrapped bone. I give a confused look at him, but he seems confident that the present will work.

"You sure about that?"

"OF COURSE! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, AM NEVER WRONG AND ALWAYS ACCURATE!"

"Do you want me to remind you about the oneshot Shony made?"

"THE PRANK WAR?" He asks,"I REMEMBER IT LIKE IT WAS YESTERDAY!"

"It WAS yesterday, Paps..."I reply,"But chronologically, it's in the future,"

Focusing on other things besides non-canon oneshots, we wait for Undyne to come to the door. She finally answers and gives a readying look to Papyrus.

"Hi, Papyrus!" She says,"Ready for your extra-private, one-on-one training?"

"YOU BET I AM!" Papyrus says,"AND I BROUGHT A FRIEND!

Papyrus steps aside and Undyne speaks to me.

"Hi, I don't think we've-"

She gives a tensed look when she sees me. I stare back at her with a small frown on my face. She must still be mad about earlier. Undyne looks to Papyrus before returning her face to normal.

"Why don't. You two. Come in?" She says, trying not to explode with rage.

Papyrus and I walk inside and we're greeted with a quaint room. It's extremely in contrast to her fierce personality. It's almost breathtaking how neat the room was kept.

"HERE, UNDYNE," Papyrus says.

"MY FRIEND BROUGHT A GIFT FOR YOU ON THEIR OWN!"

Papyrus holds out the bone and gives the same big smile like always.

"Uh...thanks," Undyne says, taking the bone,"I'll, uh, put it with the others,"

Undyne goes near the stove in the room and opens a drawer FILLED with bones just like the one Papyrus had given her just now.

"So are we ready to start?" Undyne asks.

"WHOOPSY DOOPSY! I JUST REMEMBERED!" Papyrus says,"I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM! YOU TWO HAVE FUN!"

How do you REMEMBER the fact you need to go to the bathroom? More importantly, skeletons need to use the bathroom? They're nothing, but bones...Papyrus runs and jumps out the window, breaking the glass. I look towards Undyne after the stunt and speak.

"Sorry about him,"

"No problem," She responds,"So why are YOU here? To rub your victory in my face? To humiliate me even further? IS THAT IT?"

"N-no! Why are you treating me like the villain here!" I protest,"You nearly killed me! You honestly think I would come back and mock you when you could easily wipe me out again!?"

Undyne lets that sink in before composing herself. Something tells me that getting a truce with her is going to be more difficult than I thought.

"Then why are you here?" She asks,"...Wait, I get it. You think that I'm gonna be friends with you, huh? Right?"

"Er...well, that was the plan, anyway..."

"REALLY? How delightful! I accept!" She laughs,"Let's all frolic in the fields of friendship,"

Okay, now you're just pushing it.

"...NOT!" she exclaims,"Why would I EVER be friends with YOU!? If you weren't my houseguest, I'd beat you up right now!"

If I were you, I'd care less about that person being my houseguest and end them right now instead of acting like this is a sitcom in California.

"You're the enemy of everyone's hopes and dreams!" she says,"I WILL NEVER BE YOUR FRIEND,"

Again, making rash judgments about a person you don't know anything about. Good job, Undyne.

"Now get out of my house!" She yells.

"Well, if you insist then I guess-"

"DANG! WHAT A SHAME..." Papyrus interrupts,"I THOUGHT UNDYNE COULD BE FRIENDS WITH YOU. BUT I GUESS I OVERESTIMATED HER. SHE'S JUST NOT UP TO THE CHALLENGE,"

Papyrus hurriedly walks away from the situation he just started.

"CHALLENGE!? WHAT!?" She says,"Papyrus! Wait a second...DARNIT! He thinks I can't be friends with YOU!? What a joke! I could make friends with a wimpy loser like you any day!"

Reverse psychology...Papyrus, you genius.

"Listen up, human!" Undyne says,"We're not just going to be friends, were going to be BESTIES!"

OH THE HORROR!

"I'll make you like me so much you won't be able to think of anyone else!" She says,"It's the PERFECT REVENGE!"

She gets the maniacal look off of her face and gives a friendly smile. I instantly feel unease for some unknown reason.

"Why don't you have a seat?" Undyne says, smiling.

I comply and sit down on the lone seat near the table.

"Comfortable?" she asks,"I'll get you something to drink,"

She goes to the fridge and brings out some tea, sugar, soda, and...lemonade. Wait...why'd she bring out sugar? Am I going to DRINK the sugar? How does that work? Not only is it odd, but it's EXTREMELY unhealthy.

"All set! What would you like?" Undyne asks.

I look towards the pot of sugar. I remember that I haven't had a single sweet since it got here. Then again, I'm afraid that if I do something she doesn't like then there'll be a spear heading in my direction. I start to get up. She throws a spear at the table I was sitting at.

"JESUS CHRIS-AH, MY LEG!" I scream, holding my leg.

I sort of jumped when she threw the spear. My right leg hit the bottom of the split table.

"HEY! DON'T GET UP!" Undyne yells,"YOU'RE THE GUEST! SIT DOWN AND ENJOY YOURSELF!"

"OKAY THEN, I HAVE NO ISSUES WITH THAT!" I say, hurriedly sitting down.

"Um, why not just point to what you want?" She says,"You can use the spear!"

"Gladly!"

If she gets any bright ideas...I have a weapon at the ready! I decided to go with tea since there was no way I was going to be able to drink sugar, as much as the idea is tempting.

"...tea, huh?" she asks,"Coming right up!"

Undyne walks around the kitchen for a bit and prepares the tea. When all was said and done, she somehow manages to set it on the broken table without it tipping over. I just stare at it for a moment to let it cool.

"It's not THAT hot!" Undyne yells,"Just drink it already!"

Okay, okay! Stop yelling at me! I take a sip and it's burning. I flinch for a second to recover from the slight shock. Other than the temperature, it's pretty good.

"You know..." Undyne starts,"It's kind of strange you chose THAT tea...Golden flower tea...That's ASGORE's favorite kind,"

"Wait, Golden Flower Tea?" I say,"Wait here for a second,"

-88-

Me and Undyne are at her house looking over the Golden Flower I got from Frisk. I never told her who it was from because I wanted to keep Frisk's location a secret. He shouldn't be targeted because I thought it'd be okay to give away his location.

"Now that I think about it...you kind of remind me of him,"

I remind you of a king? Well I appreciate the-

"You're both TOTAL weenies!"

Oh, son of a goat Undyne.

Undyne pauses and thinks to herself for a bit.

"Y'know, I was a pretty hotheaded kid,"

I can see that.

"Once, to prove I was the strongest, I tried to fight ASGORE,"

And you got yourself laid out.

"Emphasis on TRIED,"

My point is proven. I put away the Golden Flower and await her story.

"I couldn't land a single blow on him!" she says,"And worse, the whole time, he refused to fight back! I was so humiliated..."

That sounds a lot like the battle we had a while ago. I still remember it fondly.

"Afterwards, he apologized and said something goofy," says Undyne,"'Excuse me, do you want to know how to beat me?',"

That is a bit odd...but then again, from what Papyrus had went and said, it seems likely he would say something like that.

"I said yes, and from then on, he trained me," She says,"One day, during practice, I finally knocked him down,"

So Undyne was taught how to fight by ASGORE and uses those teaching to teach others. It's like passing down skills through generations. My brother would be all over this.

"I felt...bad," She says,"But he was beaming...I had never seen someone more proud to get their butt kicked,"

"It just means he was doing something right," I explain,"You being able to hit him was a sign of progress. He must have been proud of you,"

Undyne nods and continues speaking.

"Anyway, long story short, he kept training me...and now I'm the head of the Royal Guard!"she finishes,"So I'm the one who gets to train dorks to fight! Like, uh, Papyrus. But...I don't know if I can ever let Papyrus into the Royal Guard,"

I eagerly listened to her backstory. It was interest to hear the things she went through in her lifetime.

"He isn't strong enough yet?" I ask.

"What? No way! It's not that he's weak!" She says,"He's actually pretty freaking tough! It's just that...he's too innocent and nice!"

I can understand that. He'd be flying into battles without any idea of what the enemy is capable of.

"I mean, look, he was SUPPOSED to capture you...and he ended up being FRIENDS with you instead!" she explains,"I could NEVER send him into battle! He'd get ripped little smiling shreds. That's part of why I started teaching him how to cook you know?"

His spaghetti could use a little work. I grimace from the taste I got from it when Papyrus and I had hung out.

Eventually, Undyne realizes that I'm out of tea after she was done talking about her life. I really didn't need anymore, but the fact she would pour me some more for us to talk over made me smile a bit.

"Wait a second..." She says,"Papyrus...his cooking lesson...HE WAS SUPPOSED TO HAVE THAT RIGHT NOW!"

I look towards the window Papyrus broke.

"And if HE'S not here to have it..."

Oh no...

I start to get up and head out of the house, Undyne pulls me back though.

"YOU'LL HAVE TO HAVE IT FOR HIM!" she yells,"NOTHING has brought Papyrus and I closer than cooking!"

If she taught Paps how to cook...oh dear.

"Which means that if I give you his lesson...WE'LL BECOME CLOSER THAN YOU CAN EVER IMAGINE!" She shouts,"Afraid!? We're gonna be best friends!"

The thing that's scaring me isn't being friends with you...as much as you want to believe that.

Undyne jumps on the counter and slides across it, knocking all the drinks onto the floor, breaking them. She then grabs me BY THE HAIR and jumps over to the counter, setting me down. I straighten my cornrows out and glare at her. She pays me no mind.

"Let's start with the sauce!"

Undyne stomps her foot and vegetables fall from the ceiling. I try not to question how in the world that happened.

"Envision these vegetables as your greatest enemy!" she says,"Now! Pound them to dust with your fists!"

I take a deep breath.

"I HATE IT WHEN DAD TAKES AWAY MY PHONE!" I yell.

-88-

Long story short, the cooking session went horribly. The house was on fire and Undyne and I were covered in sauce. Undyne resolves not to trying to be my friend anymore after her mind slaps her a few times.

"I really screwed this up, didn't I?" She asks,"I can't force you to like me, human. Some people just don't get along well with each other,"

"Well..." I start.

"I understand if you feel that way about me. And if we can't be friends...that's okay," She says,"Because...if we're not friends...IT MEANS I CAN DESTROY YOU WITHOUT REGRET!"

"W-What!? H-Hey! Wait a second!" I yell.

My SOUL appears, but she does absolutely nothing to it.

"I've been defeated...my house is in shambles," Undyne says,"I even failed to befriend you. That's it. I don't care if you're my guest anymore,"

Well this was bound to happen sometime...

"One final rematch! All out on both sides! IT'S THE ONLY WAY I CAN REGAIN MY LOST PRIDE!" She shouts.

"Undyne, wait!" I protest.

"NOW COME ON! HIT ME WITH ALL YOU'VE GOT! NGAHHHH!"

Here goes nothing...I pull back my fist and swing at Undyne...but I only wind up with a small punch on her. She isn't hurt at all from my attack.

"What," She says, sounding like more of a statement than a question,"That's the best you can manage?"

I turn my head towards the ground and stay silent.

"Even attacking at full force...you just can't muster any intent to hurt me, huh?"

Undyne drops her spear, reluctant to fight any longer.

"I don't actually want to hurt you either," she sighs,"At first, I hated your stupid saccharine shtick, but...the way you hit me right now, it...reminded me of someone I used to train with,"

From what she told me earlier, it's probably Asgore.

"Now I know you aren't just some wimpy loser," She realizes,"You're a wimpy loser with a big heart!"

Undyne pauses and thinks to herself. I'm left looking about the ruined house. Plates and cans were lying strewn about everywhere.

"Listen human, it seems that you and ASGORE are fated to fight," Undyne says,"But knowing him...he probably doesn't want to. Talk to him. I'm sure you can persuade him to let you go home,"

I'm hoping it's that easy. I have a feeling it won't be though, but I can try at least.

"Eventually some mean human will fall down here...and I'll take THEIR soul instead...and if you DO hurt ASGORE...I'll take the human souls...cross the barrier...and beat the hell out of you!" she says,"That's what friends are for, right?"

"I won't hurt the guy. I haven't really hurt ANYBODY as of late,"

"Right, now let's get the hell out of this flaming house!" She says with the biggest grin ever.

We leave the house and watch the flames engulf it.

"Well, that was fun, huh?" Undyne says,"We'll have to hang out again another time...! But, uh, somewhere else I guess. So if you need me, drop by Snowdin, OK!?"

"Alright, Undyne," I reply.

"OH! And if you ever need help, just give Papyrus a ring, ok?" She says,"Since we're in the same spot, I'll be able to talk too! Well, see ya later, punk!"

Undyne runs off without another word. I'm left sitting there watching the fiery house. I start off down the road towards Hotland, wanting to know who this Alphys person is. One thing is for sure though...

Whoever Asgore might be, he's definitely going to be a challenge.

* * *

 **It took me a long while to upload this. I hope you guys had fun reading this chapter I went and wrote. I realized I have a love for writing stories and sharing them!**

 **I'm also celebrating the fact that so many people are taking a look at this story. Sure, my review count is much less, but I'm just happy people are looking at it in the first place.**

 **When I get a certain amount, I'll probably release another oneshot. Like always though, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed the story. Until then!**


	9. Stand and FIGHT

**This one is going to be a bit of a biggie. I'm introducing a new character into this story. I want you guys to try and figure out who it is. Anyways...WE REACHED 1,000 VIEWS ON THIS STORY. I didn't think so many people would look at it. Also, when the time comes, I'm preparing a special oneshot based around Christmas. Like the other, it is completely cut off from the story. Anyways...1,000! YAY! *Ahem* Until then!...**

 **Blue Ahoge - Tsunderplane...IT WILL BE GLORIOUS! And a bit feelsy if I can manage that.**

 **PoisonChimera - I hope this chapter doesn't disappoint then!**

 **mockstevenh - Well throughout the game, you sort of forget Frisk is a child. I mean, he fights a practical GOD at the end of the game. I want people to go throughout the story realizing that Anna is still, at heart, a child. As for the regular enemies having personalities...there will most likely be more of situations like those...like the Tsunderplane!**

 **This is the end of the Author's Note. Stop reading this text.**

* * *

Walking through Hotland, I notice that there's a giant building that has the word 'LAB' on the front in big letters. The other way being blocked by guards, I head in that direction. The door was unlocked so it was easy for me to head inside. Unfortunately for me, it was too dark to see anything. I had to feel my way along the walls to make it through the room. I saw a computer that had surveillance footage of...me?

Come to think of it, I did see tons of cameras scattered throughout the UNDERGROUND. Maybe they all lead to this computer. I hear a door open and the lights suddenly switch on. Another monster was standing on the other side of the room. It was yellow, had a lab coat, glasses, and resembled a dinosaur. I back up a bit, trying to create some distance before tripping over a precariously laying book. The monster then looks up and notices me.

"Oh. My god," It says,"I didn't expect you to show up so soon!"

It was a woman's voice. It sounded frantic and nervous.

"Hello!" I greet,"My name-"

"Anna Sathe, right?" the monster asks,"I know who YOU are!"

The dinosaur begins to look about the room, shuffling their feet a bit quickly here and there. She looked a bit worrisome about something. Whatever it is, I have no idea. I stand up and dust myself off.

"I haven't showered, I'm barely dressed, it's all messy, and..."

The monster stops and looks at me.

"W-well...H-h-hiya!" She stutters,"I'm Dr. Alphys. I'm ASGORE's royal scientist,"

Well she seems friendly. Wait...Alphys? Undyne mentioned her name while we were fighting and at her house. They're probably good friends. I'll have to talk to Alphys about Undyne later.

"I'm not one of the 'bad guys'!" Alphys says quickly,"Actually, since you stepped out of the RUINS, I've, um...been 'observing' your journey through my console,"

"Is that why there were so many cameras everywhere?" I ask.

"AH! You saw them!?" Alphys exclaims.

"They weren't exactly...'subtle'..." I respond.

"Um...anyway...your fights, your friendships, everything!" Alphys lists.

That's a bit creepy, don't you think? Having a person watching you unknowingly through some sort of computer? It's just plain weird for heaven's sake!

"I was originally going to stop you, but...watching someone on a screen really makes you root for them," Alphys says.

"I can understand that, Dad always cheers for the rugby teams on TV now and again," I answer.

"S-so, ahhh, now I want to help you!" She says.

"Help accepted!"

"R-really!?"

"Yeah, I don't know much about the UNDERGROUND besides the books I've read in the Snowdin library and the signs I've seen in Waterfall," I explain,"Having someone give me a few pointers and tips is great!"

"Great! Using my knowledge, I can easily guide you through Hotland!" Alphys says,"I know a way directly to ASGORE's castle, no problem!"

"Well c'mon let's get going!" I say.

Alphys pauses and looks at the floor for a bit and shuffles her feet. There's going to be an issue with getting to ASGORE, isn't there?

"Well, actually, umm, there's just a tiny issue," She says.

"Well as long as it's tiny then I don't see much of a problem," I respond.

"A long time ago, I made a robot named Mettaton," Alphys says,"Originally, I built him to be an entertainment robot. Uh, you know, like a robotic TV star or something,"

"That sounds a bit fun, actually," I say,"What's the issue with him?"

"I'm getting to that," She responds,"Anyway, recently I decided to make him more useful. You know, just some small practical adjustments,"

Small isn't that bad right? There can't be much of an issue if there was only a tweak. Although, it's programming, so I'm expecting there to be drastic changes if she messed with some things.

"Like, um...anti...anti-human combat features?" She says, smiling nervously.

It's just an enemy that attacks right? Still...it's a robot. What if it's a big one. I've seen lots of large enemies lately. And Alphys has seen my fights. What if she adjusted the robot to beat every strategy I had?

I start to panic and begin pacing a bit, thinking about what the robot would look like. Alphys notices and tries to calm me down.

"Of c-course, when I saw you coming, I immediately decided that I had to remove those features!" She says,"Unfortunately, I may have made a teensy mistake while doing so,"

It's software combined with an AI...there's going to be a big change, isn't there?

"And, um...now he's an unstoppable killing machine with a thirst for human blood?"

SON OF A GOAT ALPHYS!

Alphys laughs nervously and fiddles with her hands for a bit.

"But, ummm, hopefully we won't run into him!" She says.

A bump is heard shortly after her words finish. A second one sounds off before more happen, and we both look around before our eyes rest on the wall. Getting closer, we could hear metal parts clanking together.

"Oh no..." We both say.

"OHHHH YES!" I hear a robotic voice say,"WELCOME, BEAUTIES..."

A spotlight appears on a rectangular-shaped robot. It was holding a microphone in one hand and moved around on one wheel. That must be Mettaton...well, at least he isn't that scary looking.

"...TO TODAY'S QUIZ SHOW!"

Colorful lights and game show music starts playing. I look around, confused at the sudden appearance of it all.

"OH BOY! I CAN ALREADY TELL IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT SHOW!" he says,"EVERYONE GIVE A BIG HAND FOR OUR WONDERFUL CONTESTANT!"

He promptly claps with the sound of others. I look around to see where all the clapping is coming from before I notice a sound feature on him.

"NEVER PLAYED BEFORE, GORGEOUS?" Mettaton asks me,"NO PROBLEM! IT'S SIMPLE!"

Please don't call me that. It sounds a bit strange when you say it in that robotic sounding voice.

"THERE'S ONLY ONE RULE!" He claims.

One rule, huh? This is one odd quiz show. Although I'm sure the rule is to just get the answers right. That's usually the main focus of games like these; to see who can get the most right without screwing up.

"ANSWER CORRECTLY...OR YOU DIE!" It says.

Well...I'm not okay with this. Time to g-

I'm pulled into a FIGHT. My SOUL appears from my center.

"LET'S START WITH AN EASY ONE!" Mettaton says,"What's the prize for answering correctly?"

I'm given four answers with thirty seconds to choose one.

A - Money

B - Mercy

C - New car

D - More questions

I take a bit to think. Considering the luck I've had so far, combined with the fact that this guy is my enemy, the first three choices seem really unlikely. I choose D and it winds up being correct.

"RIGHT! SOUNDS LIKE YOU GET IT!" Mettaton cheers,"HERE'S YOUR TERRIFIC PRIZE!"

"What's the king's full name?"

Once again, four questions and thirty seconds.

A - Lord Fluffybuns

B - Fuzzy Pushover

C - Asgore Dreemurr

D - Dr. Friendship

I already knew this one because so many people had said it. I press C and it's correct.

"CORRECT! WHAT A TERRIFIC ANSWER!" Mettaton praises,"ENOUGH ABOUT YOU. LET'S TALK ABOUT ME!"

Neither of those questions were about me. What kind of egotistical freak is this guy?

"What are robots made of?"

A - Hopes&Dreams

B - Metal&Magic

C - Snips&Snails

D - Sugar&Spice

I read in the Snowdin library that monsters were basically SOULs with magic surrounding that SOUL. And since Mettaton is made out of metal...I click B and it's correct.

"TOO EASY FOR YOU, HUH?" Mettaton asks,"HERE'S ANOTHER EASY ONE FOR YOU!"

A gigantic question pops up in small letters. I look at it confused and look down at the answer choices I get.

A - 31.054 minutes

B - 16.232 minutes

C - 32.049 minutes

D - 32.058 minutes

I look at the question and the answers before I cover my head with my hands. I haven't learned these kinds of things in school yet! I'm only in fourth grade! It wasn't long before I heard someone speak up.

"Psst!" I hear the voice say,"Over here!"

I look in the direction and see Alphys. She makes the letter D with her hands. I look at her for a bit before choosing D like she wants me to. It's correct. She gives me a thumbs up and I get a big grin on my face. 4 Seconds on the timer left before I had chosen.

"WONDERFUL! I'M ASTOUNDED, FOLKS!" He says,"DON'T 'COUNT' ON YOUR VICTORY,"

I hope that wasn't a-

I sigh when I realize it was.

"How many flies are in this jar?"

A - 54

B - 53 C - 55

D - 52

Once again, I hear a 'psst'. Sneaking a peek at Alphys, she makes the letter A. I choose that answer, and it was the right one. I was on a roll with Alphys helping me out. It looked like all was well for me.

"CORRECT! YOU'RE SO LUCKY TODAY!" Mettaton shouts,"LET'S PLAY MEMORY GAME,"

"What monster is this?"

It brings up half a picture of a Froggit.

A - Froggit

B - Whimsun

c - Moldsmal

D - Mettaton

I saw the option there clear as day, but I look towards Alphys. She makes the letter D. Why that answer? I decide to listen to her because the other choices she made were correct. Also, she programmed the robot this way so she must know the answers to the questions. I choose D and, like expected, it's correct. Although, the froggit picture expands to show Mettaton wearing a t-shirt with a froggit on it. My mouth drops open and I glare at Mettaton.

"I'M SO FLATTERED YOU REMEMBERED!"

I bet you are, you troll bot...

"BUT CAN YOU GET THIS ONE?" He asks,"Would you smooch a ghost?"

All the answers said the same thing. 'Heck Yeah'. Alphys just gives Mettaton a sneer. The timer was going up instead of down, oddly enough. I choose a random answer and it's correct. I suppose all of them were for that question.

"GREAT ANSWER! I LOVE IT!" Mettaton cheers,"HERE'S A SIMPLE ONE,"

"How many letters in the name Mettatonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn-"

All the answer choices were going up in numbers. I look desperately towards Alphys for the answer and she gives me a C-formation. I choose that as my answer and it's correct.

"OF COURSE THAT WAS EASY FOR YOU!" Mettaton sounds a bit frustrated this time,"TIME TO BREAK OUT THE BIG GUNS!"

"In the dating simulation video game "Mew Mew Kissy Cutie" what is Mew Mew's favorite food?"

What in the world is-

"OH! OH! I KNOW THIS ONE! IT'S SNAIL ICE CREAM!" Alphys suddenly says,"IN THE FOURTH CHAPTER EVERYONE GOES TO THE BEACH, AND SHE BUYS ICE CREAM FOR ALL OF HER FRIENDS,"

I sit here and watch Alphys suddenly nerd-out right during a quiz show. No doubt this is live, so everyone is going to witness Dr. Alphys acting like a total geek. Although, geeks and nerds are just labels people say to identify someone in a hurtful way. It's rude.

"BUT IT'S SNAIL FLAVOR AND SHE'S THE ONLY ONE WHO WANTS IT!" Alphys yells,"IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS OF THE GAME BECAUSE IT'S ACTUALLY A VERY POWERFUL message about friendship and..."

Alphys voice fades out and she looks around nervously now that she's been caught by Mettaton.

"ALPHYS, ALPHYS, ALPHYS," He says,"YOU AREN'T HELPING OUR CONTESTANT ARE YOU?"

Welp. I think now is the right time to help out Dr. Alphys. She's assisted me in most of these questions. It's only fair that I help her.

"I'LL ASK A QUESTION YOU'LL BE SURE TO KNOW THE ANSWER TO!" Mettaton says.

"Who does Dr. Alphys have a crush on?"

WHOA! THAT IS PERSONAL STUFF! NO WAY AM I ANSWERING THAT QUESTION CORRECTLY! I don't care if I get hurt from answering it wrongly. Nobody deserves to have such a special secret broadcasted on television. Alphys puts her hands out and shakes them in a way that says 'Please don't do this!". I look at the options I have.

A - Undyne

B - Asgore

C - Anna

D - Don't know

I choose 'don't know' instantly and...it was correct? In any case, Alphys seems happy with me.

"CORRECT," Mettaton says,"DR. ALPHYS HAS A CRUSH ON THE UNKNOWABLE,"

What a jerk! Alphys scowls at Mettaton and I just glare at him.

"YOU SEE, ALPHYS BELIEVES THERE IS SOMEONE OUT THERE. SOMEONE WATCHING HER. SOMEONE SHE THINKS IS 'CUTE' AND 'INTERESTING'," He continues.

This guy doesn't seem to care that we're on TELEVISION. But I suppose since it's technically an evil robot, it makes sense to some degree.

"HELLO, THEORETICAL PERSON. DR. ALPHYS LIKES YOU. TOO BAD YOU ARE NOT REAL,"

A sound plays with many people laughing all at the same time. It's a giant act to mock Dr. Alphys.

That's it.

I write down part of this situation, including my plan to deal with Mettaton. Having enough of this guy, I pick up a random book and throw it at Mettaton. He just brushes the hit off.

"Tsk tsk," Mettaton says,"That was quite rude of you,"

He sends a bolt of electricity straight at me.

"ANNA!" Alphys yells.

I fall to the ground, holding myself in pain.

"PERSON, IF YOU'RE OUT THERE, HOW ABOUT GIVING US A SIGN, RIGHT NOW?"

Nothing happens, and Mettaton laughs again.

"THAT SETTLES THAT, DOESN'T IT?" He says,"WELL WELL WELL. WITH DR. ALPHYS HELPING YOU, THE SHOW HAS NO DRAMATIC TENSION! WE CAN'T GO ON LIKE THIS!"

I try and work through the pain to listen to whatever Mettaton was trying to say.

"THIS WAS JUST THE PILOT EPISODE! NEXT UP, MORE DRAMA! MORE ROMANCE! MORE BLOODSHED! UNTIL NEXT TIME, DARLINGS...!"

Mettaton flies off using some sort of rocket and I finally let out a scream of pain. Alphys rushes next to me and starts to panic.

"Ahhh...what do I do..." She says,"T-The human is hurt and M-Mettaton is out causing trouble!"

"Snowdin...please..." I ask her.

"Snowdin, huh? A-alright then. Just please, Hang on a bit longer!" Alphys pleads.

"S-Sorry..." I say.

"ANNA!"

 **-88-**

I wake up later to find myself in the skele-bros house, in a bed, covered with sheets. I look around for a bit to get a clear view of where I was. The room was warm and quiet. The sheets I were laying on were green and wrinkly. I hear the doorknob turn a bit before Papyrus walks in. He scans the room before his eyesockets found me. His eyes widened as I smiled at him and the skeleton practically looked like he was going to fall apart.

"EVERYONE! THE HUMAN IS AWAKE!" He says to whoever is downstairs.

I heard tons of fast moving footsteps and something being dragged along the ground. Everyone seems to be trying to rush their way up here. Undyne comes through the door along with Sans, the Dogi, Doggo, Monster Kid, Shyren, and Aaron, who was being dragged along inside a cooler filled with water. Sans' eyesockets have no light coming from them and he isn't grinning like he usually does. He walks up to me and I look at him.

" **Why the hell do you do this!?** " he asks," **Why do you put yourself in danger like that, and then act as if it's nothing later?** "

He sounds angry. The answer I'm thinking of telling him might not be the one he wants.

"He was messing with Alphys and-"

" **We're not talking about Alphys!** " Sans yells.

"Sans, ease up on her. She's still a kid after all," I hear Aaron say.

Sans composes himself slightly. I can still see the light within his eyesockets appearing and disappearing slowly.

"Sorry for worrying you all..." I say.

"It's been days!" Everyone turns to Shyren, who turns away from them,"A-At least three or so..."

Her voice gradually dies out and she coughs, embarrassed at her sudden outburst. I look at everybody wide-eyed.

"Three days!?"

"Sorry to say, weird puppy, but it's true..." Dogamy answers,"Three whole days,"

"(We thought you were dead.)" Says Dogaressa,"(Undyne actually started digging a grave.)"

"The townsfolk are outside and Grillby hasn't spoken all day!" Doggo says,"Well, not that he says much, anyway. But, still, not even a single word!"

"What're they all waiting outside for?" I ask.

"You, duh!" Undyne says,"They think you're dead!"

I think to myself for a small bit. I've been out for three whole days. I've been here and I've kept the townsfolk on edge.

"I'm just some random kid to them," I reply,"Why are they stressing out so much over me?"

"You aren't just a kid!" Shyren yells again before lowering her voice,"Y-you taught me to face my fears and be proud of my voice..."

"You taught me that I don't need to change to be liked by everybody!" Aaron adds.

"YOU WERE MY FIRST FRIEND!" Papyrus says.

"You introduced us to a whole new outlook on things, pup!" the Dogi speak.

"You proved to me that you're strong even without actual strength," Undyne says.

"You saved my life!" Monster Kid speaks,"That's gotta mean SOMETHING about you!"

"All of this,"Doggo says,"And you think you're just some random kid? I may not be able to see you right now, but I can still hear you. You're lying,"

I look at all of them and smile at their words. I didn't know I was so loved by everyone down here. Up until now, I've had monsters attacking me on all sides.

"those others that wanna kill you? well..."Sans starts,"they just haven't seen what you can do yet, kid,"

"LET'S GO TELL EVERYONE THAT ANNA IS OKAY!" Papyrus says.

Everyone follows Papyrus out of the room except for Sans. He stares at me for a bit before speaking.

"i thought you were dead, kid," Sans says,"you had us all worrying our heads over you,"

I get out from under the bed sheets, hug Sans, and he closes his bony arms around me.

"I'm sorry..."

I feel small drops of water hit my shoulder. Was he crying? I tighten my grip in response. Sans pulls away and I see blue lines coming from his eyesockets. They go down and end at the bottom of his skull.

"i-i had honestly thought..." Sans falters,"...listen, get some rest, kid. you'll need it,"

 **-88-**

I wake up late at night to hear Sans mumbling to himself downstairs. The door wasn't closed, so it was pretty easy to hear. I step outside from the room a small bit and realize that the room I was in was for Sans. Looking over the ledge, I hear Sans speaking as if he was talking to someone. He's clearly alone, though.

"go away..." he says,"...w-what? no way! i won't!"

Who in the world is he speaking to?

"she isn't like the other one...i know because she hasn't hurt anyone yet! not even a single EXP! yes, i know what she did in that timeline, but that hasn't happened yet," Sans continues to speak," **GET OUT OF MY HEAD!** "

"Uh, Sans?"

Sans turns around and looks at me in a bit of a frightened way. His left eyesocket is burning a blue color. He's breathing a bit heavily and his hands are tightened into fists.

"h-hey, kid," Sans says,"why're you awake?"

"Who are you talking to?" I ask him.

"nobody, Anna," He lies.

But I know he was. I know that he knows I know he was. He's trying his best to play it off like nothing is wrong. So, I decide not to pressure him any further.

"Hey. I gotta go back to Hotland, okay?" I explain.

"w-what?" Sans falters,"you're still injured! and who knows if you'll survive that freak a second time?"

"I have to at least try," I plead.

" **No, Anna,** " Sans pupils are gone now.

He takes a moment to control his sudden temper. He sits down on the couch and covers his skull with his hands. Sans said my name...that means a definite no. So, I walk back into Sans' room again and listen closely. He's mumbling with that other figure again, a bit more exasperated than last time. Nothing is going right today...unless...

I search the drawers for my diary and find it next to a silver key. I turn to where my last entry was and look at it for a second. It wasn't completely finished. Flowey also told me I had a SAVE. If this was like a game, can't I go back to it? But...I've never done something like this before. I hold my finger to the writing and try to picture the Mettaton Quiz Show in my head. It begins to play itself out. The questions, Alphys helping me. And then I reach the part where I held up the book and stop picturing it. I was glowing a bit faintly. Sans comes into the room, notices me, and holds his arm out with a frightened look.

"WAIT A SE-"

SAVE 1 LOADED

 **-88-**

I pick up a random book and stop. Here I was again. The quiz has ended and Alphys watches Mettaton fly off. We're left standing there alone in that room.

"Well that was certainly something,"

I turn and start to head out of the lab, a determined look on my face. However, I'm stopped by Alphys shortly after.

"Let me give you my ph-phone number!" she says,"Th-then...m-maybe...if you need help, I could,"

I didn't mind Alphys wanting to help me out. I was going to deal with Mettaton, and Alphys was his programmer. I'd have the advantage over him. Alphys looks at the phone for a bit before staring at it wide-eyed.

"Wh...where'd you get that phone!? It's ANCIENT!" She says,"It doesn't even have texting,"

I thought phones were just to call people...oh well. I haven't actually needed to call anybody, anyway. Alphys leaves the room for a second and comes back with an upgraded version of my phone. The phone was a striking shade of red and had a key chain attached to it.

"I even signed you up for the underground's No. 1 social network!"

She leaves for the bathroom a while later. I look around the room a bit, grab a pack of instant noodles while Alphys isn't looking. I see a second exit out of the lab and head in that direction. As I reach a new part of Hotland, I remember the words that everyone told me earlier.

"I promise, I'll find a way for me and everyone here to get aboveground, even if I have to load my SAVE over and over!"

Asgore, here I come. Because now...I have one more thing to fight for.

* * *

 **Did I do good with this chapter or did I goof it all up? I wanted to introduce how my story works when it comes to loading SAVE files. Also...try and figure out who the special person is in this chapter. I'll let you know if you figure it out. Aaaanywaays, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you like this story. I need to know what I can do to improve upon this. This is a story that I really enjoy making. The update time for this is daily. It usually happens after 5:30 PM CST. So if you want to see another chapter, wait for that time. If it isn't there, it'll be there soon. Until then!**

 **1,000 VIEWS GUYS! THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!**


	10. Puzzles Galore

**I'M FINALLY DONE WITH MY EOCs...but I have to take more tests next week.. Booo...Oh well. ANYWAY! I did this chapter really late at night. I finished it a bit after midnight. There will be more Mettaton in this chapter along with a reference to a certain social media website. Tell me what it is if you figure it out. It's actually pretty obvious now that I think about it...OH WELL. Until then!**

* * *

As I walk out into the next part of Hotland, a ringtone comes from my phone. I check it and apparently Alphys updated her status on Monsterbook.

'just realized i didn't watch undyne fight the human v.v'

I hope she realizes that I can see her posts. I look about the area and continue on through Hotland. I didn't even manage to leave the room before Alphys updated her status again.

'well i know she's unbeatable i'll ask her abt it later ^.^'

Is it really that difficult to spell 'about'? Also, Alphys is in for some big disappointment if she thinks Undyne is unbeatable. Not even a step and there the phone rings again.

'for now i gotta call up the human and guide them =^.^='

This is starting to get a bit irritating. There's no need to change your status that many times in one day. But what do I know? I never really got around to social media. When I reach the next area I'm thrown into a FIGHT.

Using the 'check' option, I find out that the name of the monster is Vulkin. It's a little volcano with four legs; a bit adorable.

It's attack was a bit too easy to dodge. It looks like it's just having fun doing its own little thing. This makes me wonder why I'm even fighting it in the first place.

"Hey, you can do a bit better!" I encourage.

That seemed to have toned up his accuracy a bit. I saw fireballs coming at me from both sides. They were quicker than the last ones, but I take no damage. It laughs and starts parading around me in a circle. I SPARE it and the battle ends.

I see two conveyor belts. One that headed in my direction, and one that led back to me. Taking the one that led me forward, Alphys updates her status AGAIN.

'gonna call them in a minute! =^.^='

If I said I wasn't the slightest bit irritated, I'd be lying. I know she means well, but c'mon already! I sigh and take another conveyor belt. This one was a bit sharp with the turns, but I manage to stay on. Finding a safe place, I take out my diary and write down what happened to me at Snowdin.

I write at the top of that page, 'REMEMBER THIS'. Apparently if I write something down, I can return to that point in time. So...if I ever wanted to go back to Sans' room in Snowdin, I can just go there using this page. To my frustration, Alphys updates her status again.

'I HATE USING THE PHONE I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS LMAO ^.^'

What does 'lmao' mean?...I'll just ask Undyne about it later. She seems to know Alphys better than anyone else I've met so far. I see a small pad with an arrow pointing forward. Before I could step on it, I'm put into a fight.

I look at the monster before me and give a confused look. It was a plane...I'm not even going to ask why or how that's even possible, but...okay. I walk up to it and greet it.

"Uh, hello!"

"Eeeeh?" it says,"H-human...?"

As it flies around I try and meet up with it in a few places. I have to dodge the fire it leaves behind it. I'm unable to get too close to it as it's constantly moving about. Eventually the plane's face turns a bright red and it flies off.

I shrug and step on the pad. It sends me forward, spiraling. There was another pad right next to that one that could send me back over there. I ignore it and step on another just north of it.

These pads were everywhere! I head towards another and Alphys goes crazy with her status updating.

'omg ive had my claw over the last digit for 5 minutes. omg i'm just gonna do it. i'm just gonna call!'

And you switched to Monsterbook, typed up a status update, and left me here facepalming instead of pressing the button and doing something...

My phone starts to ring and I hurry to answer it...only to find out that whoever called had hung up...

SON OF A GOAT ALPHYS!

My phone rings a moment later when I reach the next room. I see orange lasers and blue lasers. I let the phone ring a bit because I don't want to answer it. I've already had enough from the constant ringing of my phone.

Alphys eventually answers and tells me, albeit awkwardly, that I should move through orange ones, but stop with blue ones. The blue lasers reminded me of Papyrus' blue attack from back in Snowdin. I took ONE step and Alphys had a status update.

'OMG I DID IT! claws haven't shook like that since undyne called me to ask about the weather... v.v'

I make my way through the lasers and meet the blue one. I let it head towards me and Alphys has another status update. I take my phone out, look at it, and freeze as the blue laser passes through me.

'WAIT THERE'S NO WEATHER DOWN HERE WHY DID SHE CALL ME'

Well if she can't see that Undyne wants to know her a bit better, I'm a bit disappointed. From looking at her status update a bit earlier, I can see that Alphys has a bit of an interest in Undyne as well. As I pass through the lasers, I press a switch attached to a pole. Instantly, it shuts off all of the lasers. Handy. Like expected, Alphys has another status.

'Oh My God i Forgot to Tell THem Where To Go'

That text aggravates me for two sole reasons. One, I'm already done with the constant ringing of my phone because Alphys can't keep her paws off the text function. And two, WHY IN THE WORLD DID SHE CAPITALIZE EVERYTHING BESIDES THE LETTER 'I'!?

I grumble and step forward. Another status.

'CUte PIC OF ME RIGHT NOW. ^.^'

I look at the attachment and see a garbage can with several pink, glittery filters over it. I chuckle to myself for a bit. I'll forgive that one text because it got me to laugh. Maybe if she sends photos like these once in a while, I'll stop being so upset...

Alphys calls again and says for me to progress, I'll need to solve the puzzles on both sides of me. The door up front was going to be locked tight until then. The puzzles themselves were pretty easy. It took a bit of adjusting before I was able to complete them. They were a bit fun to do. Alphys calls a bit later to explain the puzzles, but I had to tell her that they were already solved.

When I step into another room, I find that I can't see a single thing. My phone starts to ring, but it isn't a text this time.

"H-hey, it's kind of dark in there, isn't it?" Alphys asks,"I'll hack into the light system and brighten it up!"

As the lights cut back on I'm greeted with what looks like some sort of cooking set.

"Oh no," Alphys and I say again.

Mettaton somehow appears from behind a counter smaller than himself even though I was standing on the same side as him. Apparently hammerspaces exist in this world. Although that should have been expected, Papyrus pulls things out of nowhere all the time.

"OHHHH YES!" Mettaton says,"WELCOME, BEAUTIES, TO THE UNDERGROUND'S PREMIER COOKING SHOW!"

I stand there and glare at Mettaton. At that moment, my phone rings. I see a small text on the screen.

'You do that again and you're gonna have a bad time'

It wasn't from Alphys, and it wasn't from Toriel, Papyrus, or even Undyne! Which left...Sans...

Do what? LOAD my file to get out of Snowdin? Or get shocked and almost die? How does he even remember that? I shake the thought out of my head and focus on what Mettaton is saying.

"WE'LL NEED SUGAR, MILK, AND EGGS," Mettaton says,"GO FOR IT, SWEETHEART,"

You nearly killed me you murderous robot. Don't give me any of the "sweetheart" treatment.

I pick up the ingredients that Mettaton asks of me and place them on the cooking counter.

"PERFECT! GREAT JOB, BEAUTIFUL!"

Please stop...

"WE'VE GOT ALL OF THE INGREDIENTS WE NEED TO BAKE THE CAKE! MILK...SUGAR...EGGS..." Mettaton says,"...OH MY! WAIT A MAGNIFICENT MOMENT! HOW COULD I FORGET!"

Here we go...

"WE'RE MISSING THE MOST IMPORTANT INGREDIENT!" He says,"A HUMAN SOUL!"

He brings out a chainsaw that he's been hiding somewhere. I steel myself and stay where I was instead of running away. He slowly edges closer, the saw revving repeatedly. I hear a ring on Mettaton's phone and he answers it, slightly frustrated.

"HELLO...? I'M KIND OF IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING HERE," He says.

"W-wait a second!"

ALPHYS TO THE RESCUE! THIS MAKES UP FOR EVERY TEXT YOU'VE SENT ME!

"Couldn't you make a...couldn't you use a...Couldn't you make a substitution in the recipe?!"

"...A SUBSTITUTION?" Mettaton asks,"YOU MEAN, USE A DIFFERENT, NON-HUMAN INGREDIENT?...WHY?"

"Uhh, what if someone's...vegan?" Alphys asks.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but SOULs are- ANNA! SHE'S SAVING YOUR LIFE, WHY ARE YOU ARGUING!?

"THAT'S A BRILLIANT IDEA, ALPHYS!" He says,"ACTUALLY, I HAPPEN TO HAVE AN OPTION RIGHT HERE,"

My phone rings.

'i can't believe that worked'

I text back.

'Sans? You're watching this show?'

'it's paps' favorite show. plus, i've gotta keep my eye on you'

'But Sans', **you have no eyes** ,'

'you're amazing, kid!'

Mettaton calls me back to reality and directs me over to a can laying on a lone counter. Seems suspicious to me.

"MTT-BRAND ALWAYS-CONVENIENT HUMAN-SOUL-FLAVOR-SUBSTITUTE!"

That's a thing? Also, apparently MTT means MeTTaton...Didn't Paps have some of his products earlier? Anyway...I walk over to the counter and instantly it shoots up I don't know how many stories. I hear Mettaton wheel over.

"BY THE WAY, OUR SHOW RUNS ON A STRICT SCHEDULE," He says,"IF YOU CAN'T GET THE CAN IN THE NEXT ONE MINUTE...WE'LL JUST HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE ORIGINAL PLAN!"

My phone rings and it's Alphys speaking.

"There's not enough time to climb up!" She says,"But, when I was upgrading your phone, I added a few...features. You see that huge button that says..."JETPACK"? Watch this!"

My phone instantly transforms to a my-size jetpack. I strap it to my back and look up at all of the counters.

"Now, get up there!" Alphys yells.

I start to shoot upwards quickly. Mettaton notices this and scatters eggs to slow me down. I manage to dodge them by flying through places where the gaps were the widest. Mettaton then uses flour and only leaves narrow gaps for me to squeeze through. To my surprise, I was able to pass through all of them.

Mettaton finally resorts to using sugar. He scatters it in very large groups and I get slowed a few times. Pushing through them, Mettaton uses all three of his blockages at once. I slip between them all and make my way to the can on top of the last counter. I'm finally safe.

"HAVEN'T YOU EVER SEEN A COOKING SHOW BEFORE?" Mettaton asks,"I ALREADY BAKED THE CAKE AHEAD OF TIME! SO FORGET IT!"

Oh, son of a goat Mettaton.

I land and head to the next room. Taking out my diary, I turn to a new page and write down the Mettaton Cooking Show. Out in the distance, I see some strange building made of what looks like metal. Alphys rings me up.

"S-see that building in the distance?" She asks,"That's the CORE. The source of all power for the underground. It converts geothermal energy into magical electricity, by..." She stops for a moment to think.

"Alphys, who made the CORE?" I ask.

"Uh...nobody really knows, actually. Since I'm the Royal Scientist, I...usually get all sorts of knowledge on things like this," She says,"But, unfortunately, I don't know who made the CORE. Anyway, that's where were going to go. Inside is an elevator that leads directly to ASGORE's castle, and from there you can go home,"

Walking forward, eyeing the core, I reach an elevator that leads upwards into Hotland. When I get inside I'm given options on where to go. I choose 'Right Floor 2' and the elevator shakes a small bit. When I walks outside, I head off towards the right and see Sans again at a hot dog stand.

"OH!" I exclaim,"Hi, Sans,"

"hey, buddy, what's up?" Sans responds.

Though he's smiling the same smile as usual he seems concerned about something. I walk up to him and I notice why, he's bandaged on his right hand.

"What the heck happened to your arm!?" I say.

"nothing important," he says,"wanna buy a hot dog?"

"Sure!" I answer.

It wasn't long before he had one at the ready. It fades into my ITEMS and I look at the roof of his stand for a bit. How is SNOW even up there? I shake my head at it and begin heading off to the next area. Alphys begins posting again. This time, it's a picture.

'dinner with the girlfriend ;)'

I look at the picture and see a catgirl figuring next to a bowl of instant noodles. I laugh a bit at the photo and save it to my gallery. As I continue walking, I stumble into another enemy. I 'check' it and the name pops up as Pyrope. It looks like a flame that sat on top of coiled rope that was set on two small feet. It had a humongous grin on its face.

I decide to crank up the thermostat and Pyrope starts to move around a bit faster. He sends flames after me and I back up a small bit. I notice that the flames are orange. That means I can walk through them, right?

I pass through the flames and sure enough, they don't hurt me. After I turn up the heat again, Pyrope seems contented and the battle ends. After a while of more walking. I hear a ring this time, but not from Alphys.

I look at the name of the poster and it had the name 'CoolSkeleton95'. I laugh to myself a bit.

Papyrus...

'ARE WE POSTING HOT "PICS?" HERE IS ME AND MY COOL FRIEND'

I look at the picture and it's Papyrus flexing in front of a mirror. He had sunglasses on his face. Giant muscular biceps were pasted onto his arms. The biceps were also wearing sunglasses...as weird as that may sound. The next text I got was Alphys.

'LOL, CoolSkeleton95!...that's a joke, right?'

More walking before Papyrus responds.

'THE ONLY JOKE HERE, IS HOW STRONG MY MUSCLES ARE'

I decide to text after he said that.

'CoolSkeleton95, I don't think that sounded the way you think it did'

I start walking before getting another text from Paps.

'WHAT DO YOU...OH..."

I laugh loudly this time. Some people won't change, whether that's a good or bad thing is up to debate. Making my way to the next room, I'm greeted with three switches that were right next to a conveyor belt. Alphys calls and explains that I need to time my presses correctly.

I manage to press two of them before another call surprises me and throws me off. I hit the end of the conveyor belt and trip. My phone slides away from me and near the edge of the cliff. I hurriedly pick it up, but the call is already missed.

I walk to the next room and get another status from Alphys.

'that's the last time i try to help with a puzzle lmao'

I guess she's given up. Anyways, I make my way through the next puzzle and reach a safe point. I write down all the puzzles I've done so far. I also make sure to add in the small bit with Sans. Alphys texting starts to bother me so I put the phone on silence. I continue through Hotland before someone called me.

"Hey! You! Stop!" The voice said.

I turn around to see two large figures in suits heading towards me. The one with the bunny ears starts speaking.

"We've, like, received an anonymous tip about a human wearing a hip-to-ankle-long skirt," it said,"They told us they were wandering around Hotland right now..."

It was a slightly high pitched male voice I finished listening to. I don't like the thought of being captured. After Undyne and Mettaton, I had enough of near death for one day. I must have been making a face because the same guard spoke to me.

"I know, sounds scary, huh?" he says,"Well, stay chill. We'll bring you someplace safe okay?"

I decided to follow where they were going before the other one, the one that never spoke, said something.

"Huh?" the first guard says,"What is it, bro? Their outfit? Like, what about it?"

Both of the guards notice the skirt I'm wearing. One of the guards cough and the other speaks.

"Bummer. This is, like...mega embarrassing..." he says,"We, like, actually totally have to kill you and stuff,"

Here we go...two on one. This reminded me of the fight against the Dogi. I've done fights like this before. I'll have to ACT with one person to be able to SPARE them both. I first notice that the second guard is sweating through his armor a lot. I decide to do a favor a clean it for him.

Apparently, the armor eventually got too hot for him and he took off his breastplate. This instantly bothered the first guard. I looked between them as they team attacked me. It wasn't all that hard to dodge because the first guard's attacks were becoming sporadic and all over the place. They were in complete contrast to the second, who was calm and precise. I did take a few hits, though. I walk over to 01 and ask him what's wrong.

"I-I..."

"If you're going to say something, now would be the right time,"

01 Looks at 02 in a nervous sort of way before confessing the thoughts he'd been burying inside of himself. He confessed to enjoying every day with 02, the fighting, the standing guard.

He even said that he loves standing next to 02 and guarding with him. He loved the team attacks during the battle, but his emotions toward the end caused him to falter and lose balance.

When 02 didn't respond at first, 01 had tried to play it off as if it was some sort of crazy joke he'd been thinking of. 02 wasn't fooled, and even seemed to accept his feelings toward him.

"...01,"

"Y-yeah, bro?"

"...do you want to...get some ice cream...after this?"

"Sure, dude!"

The two of them looked at each other happily and the battle ended. I watched the two of them clasp hands and walk off away from me. As I wave to them, they wave back and we part ways.

I head off farther into Hotland, with a warm feeling in my chest, and a smile on my face.

* * *

 **I think this was a pretty neat chapter! It was mostly puzzles and a few battles here and there, but I hope I did the Mettaton part and the Royal Guard fight correctly! Like always, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this story. Until then!**


	11. Hotland's End

**I was planning on uploading this chapter earlier, but I wanted to help my family decorate the big Christmas Tree in our living room. Speaking of which...I'm going to have so much fun making that Christmas oneshot! It'll be amazing to do! Anyways, I apologize for not uploading this sooner, my bad.**

 **Tiryn - Yep, Sans will remember every little thing that Anna does. Also, that's not the only thing wrong with him. See if you can figure it out.**

 **BlueAhoge - I remember Knight Knight. She was one of my favorite fights. I think what happens in this story with Anna and Sans is going to explain how FIGHTing with Knight Knight is gonna go.**

 **mockstevenh - Having everyone explain what Anna did for them was one of my favorite parts about the story. I like adding in special heartwarming moments for everyone.** **It makes me feel good and I'm glad you felt good about it too.**

 **Also, this is my longest chapter in the story so far! Until then!**

 **...STOP READING THE TEXT ALREADY!**

* * *

I walk through Hotland some more before I stumble upon another dark room. If this follows the same pattern as last time, I should look out for Mettaton. Alphys calls me when I step in this room.

"A-another dark room, huh? D-don't worry!" She says,"M-my hacking skills have got things covered!"

As soon as the room darkens, I'm welcomed with Mettaton, of course, sitting behind a stand like a news reporter. Alphys isn't even surprised anymore; her 'oh no' was replaced with a groan.

"Are you serious?" She sighs.

"OHHHHHH YESSS!" Mettaton says,"GOOD EVENING, BEAUTIES AND GENTLEBEAUTIES,"

Does he call everybody that? It's a bit strange if you ask me. I wonder how awkward it must be for someone to outwardly tell him to stop calling them that. Should I do it?...It's tempting, but considering what happened to me earlier...nope.

"THIS IS METTATON, REPORTING LIVE FROM MTT NEWS!" He says,"AN INTERESTING SITUATION HAS ARISEN IN EASTERN HOTLAND,"

He must be talking about me. Everything else down here should seem normal to them.

"FORTUNATELY, OUR CORRESPONDENT IS OUT THERE, REPORTING LIVE!" Mettaton says,"BRAVE CORRESPONDENT! PLEASE FIND SOMETHING NEWSWORTHY TO REPORT!"

Wait, so I'm the 'correspondent'...then what's the situation? I don't want to move, but I guess I should. I walk about and see some pretty strange things. A glass of water, a basketball, a present, a book, and a glass of water. I walk over to the book since it was the thing that stood out to me. It had a picture of Mettaton on the front.

"OH NO! THAT MOVIE SCRIPT! HOW'D THAT GET THERE?" He says,"IT'S A SUPER-JUICY SNEAK PREVIEW OF MY LATEST GUARANTEED-NOT-TO-BOMB FILM: METTATON THE MOVIE XXVIII.

Why does he have twenty-eight movies about himself? It seems a bit egotistical of him. Though, considering what he's done before, this isn't completely out of the question. Mettaton rambles on about the movie script and I look around and go towards the basketball. I try and dribble it, but it just falls flat with a metal 'THUNK'. I stare at it for a second, pick it up, and start turning it over. I find an interesting string attached to it. As soon as I figure out what it is, it starts to activate. I hurriedly put it down and look around frantically for an exit.

"THAT TICKING SOUND...THAT LIT FUSE..." Mettaton says,"THAT IS MOST CERTAINLY A BOMB! BUT DON'T GET TOO EXCITED! YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE REST OF THE ROOM YET!"

The news stand that Mettaton is at starts to collapse and I scramble out of the way of falling debris.

"OH MY! IT SEEMS EVERYTHING IN THIS AREA IS ACTUALLY A BOMB!" Mettaton says,"EVEN MY WORDS ARE..."

His words literally fall from a suddenly appearing text box and explode around me.

"IF YOU DON'T DEFUSE ALL OF THE BOMBS..." Mettaton says,"THIS BIG BOMB WILL BLOW YOU TO SMITHEREENS IN TWO MINUTES! THEN YOU WON'T BE REPORTING 'LIVE' ANY LONGER!"

I get the joke...that's dark. Alphys instantly calls me after he finishes speaking.

"D-don't worry!" She says,"I installed a bomb-defusing program on your phone!"

"You seem to have a lot of things that fit the situation I was in, Alphys,"

"J-just a coincidence!"

Riiiiight. But maybe she's telling the truth. After all, she IS the Royal Scientist. I manage to defuse the dog since it was the closest to me. There were all sorts of things messing about. I had to deal with catching up to the bombs for actually getting to defuse it. After I manage to defuse them all, Mettaton flies over. He doesn't seem bothered by his failed plan in the slightest. In fact, he looks rather delighted.

"GREAT JOB! IF YOU DIDN'T DEACTIVATE THEM, THE BIG BOMB WOULD HAVE EXPLODED IN TWO MINUTES," He says,"NOW IT WON'T EXPLODE IN TWO MINUTES! INSTEAD, IT'LL EXPLODE IN TWO SECONDS!"

I had literally no time to think about my incoming death, but I had my diary with me so I should be okay. I didn't have to use it though because the bomb never went off. Mettaton notices this and gives a bit of a lower toned voice.

"AH, IT SEEMS THE BOMB ISN'T GOING OFF," He says.

Alphys calls and explains what she did, although she never finished her sentence. Luckily, Mettaton knew what happened and expressed a bit of frustration towards her.

"I-I think I'm getting a bit more confident about guiding you!" she says.

"Well, I haven't...died yet," I speak.

"True," She says,"N-now, let's, uh, get going!"

Alphys shuts off all the lasers and blockages in my path. I walk towards the next part of the room and get a closer look at the CORE. It looked magnificent as it stood proudly over the lava. I begin to wonder what it would look like inside the place. Alphys interrupts my thoughts with a call from her. I was fine with it since it wasn't another text she had thought of sending.

"I noticed you've been kind of quiet,"She says,"Are you w-worried about meeting ASGORE?"

Actually, since Mettaton had kept me occupied, I had forgotten about ASGORE. But, yes, I was a bit nervous about what to expect. He's the king I haven't before; he must have some surprises.

"Don't worry, okay?" Alphys says,"Th-the king is a really nice guy...I'm sure you can talk to him, and...w-with your human soul, you can pass through the barrier!"

She didn't sound confident when she said that. It almost sounded like she was lying. But she had nothing to lie to me about; I wasn't some dangerous murderer that was out to get her. Alphys hangs up and leaves me in silence again. There were no texts so far and I was enjoying the peace and quiet.

I reach another elevator and walk inside. Among the options, I choose left floor three. Making my way farther up, I walk outside and pass a spider standing outside of a stand. I thought about buying another Spider Donut like I did back in the RUINS, but these were waaay too pricey. Alphys rings me up when I come to another puzzle.

"Hi, Alphys here!" She says,"This room is like the room we saw before. There are two puzzles to the north and south. Solve them both to proceed!"

The puzzles were a bit high in the difficulty scale. It required me to hold back some of the blocks before sliding them around some more. Getting to the puzzles in the first place was minor difficulty because of all the propel-pads. Yeah, I call those plates with small arrows propel-pads...She then realizes that she had already signed me up for UnderNet and MonsterBook and that I've been reading her posts the entire time.

She then says she hopes I agree with her opinion on Mew Mew 2. But I have absolutely no idea what it is. I stumble across Vulkin again and soon after that, Tsunderplane forces itself into the FIGHT. I manage to SPARE Vulkin and that only left Tsunderplane.

"Why are you doing this?"

It turns its nose up at me.

"Doing what, human?"

"You forced your way into a FIGHT you weren't in, and now you're attacking me," I explain,"Why?"

Tsunderplane just flies there in silence.

"Listen, I know you want to say something, but you hold everything in!" I say to it,"You can't just go on like this and deny everything that's happening. It's a lie to me and a lie to yourself,"

"L-listen,"Tsunderplane says,"I-I...uh..."

"Come back to me when you've figured it out," I interrupt.

I run from the FIGHT and walk through the main door after finishing up the puzzles. Getting to another safe place, I write down in my diary about the puzzles I did and the Mettaton News Report. I write down where I'm currently at; a place filled with cobwebs. I walk inside and see clusters of spider webs. I look about and try to move quickly through the area. I hated spiders above snakes and cockroaches. They were creepy looking and dangerous to be around.

"Did you hear what they just said?" I hear a voice say,"They said a human wearing a skirt will come through,"

I look about and see some of the spiders talking among each other. Noting that they're talking about me, I pick up my pace slightly, but I'm slowed down by the webs.

"I heard that they hate spiders," one of them says,"I heard that they love to stomp on them,"

Stomping on spiders makes it worse! I'd never!

"I heard that they like to tear their legs off,"

Where is all of this even coming from? I'm being accused of things I never said or did...besides disliking spiders. Although, everything in the UNDERGROUND seems to be out to get me.

"I heard...that they're awfully stingy with their money,"

I see a spider suddenly appear on a large web. It laughs, covering it's mouth with one of it's hands. I turn to run, but my exits are blocked by other spiders.

"You think your taste is too refined for our pastries, don't you, deary?" it says,"I disagree with that notion,"

"L-Listen, I wanted to buy one, b-but the price was-"

"I think your taste...is exactly what this next batch needs!"

"WAAAAAH!"

-88-

Muffet sends more of her spiders after me. I jump from web to web, dodging them. Muffet had turned my SOUL to a purple coloring and now I can't move as freely; I can only stay on the webs.

"Why so pale?" she asks,"You should be proud...that you're going to make a delicious cake~"

Muffet had spiders coming at me from left and right. I jump about the web, screaming as some of them got ahold of me. I shake them off and flee from them.

"L-listen," I start,"We've had a big misunderstanding. I-If you let me go then-"

"Let you go?" She asks,"Don't be silly~"

Well it was a good try at least. As I deal with the spiders, I notice a sign with a picture of a cupcake on it. Were they serving their products during a FIGHT? Well, it's helpful, at least.

"Oh, how rude of me! I almost forgot to introduce you to my pet~" Muffet says,"It's breakfast time, isn't it? Have fun, you two~"

The web begins to shake and the spiders start to gather around me. I jump to another part of the web and a giant cupcake best gnashes its teeth at me.

"THAT ISN'T A PET!" I yell.

It begins to chase me as I climb my way up the wall, using the web. The spiders try and slow me down, but I push past them, taking damage. I launch myself from the wall and bounce off another web, landing and rolling on the web filled floor. The spiders clap and create a beat. They seem to be making some sort of music.

"The person who warned us about you..." Muffet says,"Offered us a LOT of money for your SOUL,"

Muffet pours a cup of spiders while she speaks. I shudder at the sight of them squirming inside of the cup. A spider comes up with a sign that looks to be a picture of a croissant.

"They had such a sweet smile~ and..."Muffet laughs,"It's strange, but I swore I saw them in the shadows...Changing shape...?

The croissants are sent after me and I dodge them like I would the spiders. However, they come back like boomerangs and I'm forced to hop onto the web again to avoid them. I could struggle all I want and Muffet would be amused by it. A spider comes up with a picture of a cupcake.

...Oh no...

I struggle and try to break free of the web, but Muffet just laughs. The giant cupcake monster from before lands on the web in front of me. Its landing causes me to fly off this web and onto another.

"Oh, it's lunch time, isn't it? And I forgot to feed my pet~" Muffet says.

I try and move, but I find my right leg caught in a knot. I hurriedly untie it and get out of the way just as the beast's jaws snapped down on it. Muffet sends her spiders after me to slow me down like last time, but I manage to get through them all with no problems.

"With that money, the spider clans can finally be reunited~"

Her attacks come at me a lot faster than normal. I get hit by most of them and my health is left at a low point. Eating the Crab Apple I went and bought earlier, I look towards another sign that the spider has and it looks to be Spider Donuts.

"You haven't heard? Spiders have been trapped in the RUINS for generations!" Muffet says,"Even if they go under the door, Snowdin's fatal cold is impassable alone,"

"I know that!" I say,"I've seen them! I even bought a donut from them!"

I dodge the Spider Donuts and they bounce after they hit the ground. A while later, a spider comes through and holds up what looks like a phone.

"Huh? A telegram from the spiders in the RUINS?" Muffet says,"What? They're saying that they saw you, and...you helped donate to their cause!"

I smile, knowing that helping the spiders so long ago had paid me back. I was finally a-okay.

"Oh my, this has all been a big misunderstanding~" Muffet realizes,"I thought you were someone that hated spiders~ The person who asked for that SOUL...they must have meant a DIFFERENT human in a skirt. Sorry for all the trouble~"

"N-no problem, Muffet!"

"I'll make it up to you~ You can come back here any time...and, for no charge at all...I'll wrap you up and let you play with my pet again!" She chirps.

I struggle and panic. There is NO WAY I am coming back here! Muffet laughs at my reaction and speaks.

"I'm just kidding~" She says,"I'll SPARE you now~"

Her cupcake monster picks me up in its jaws and I freeze, my eyes darting around in a frightened manner. After the creature sets me down, I dart towards the exit, trip over my feet and into a spider web, scream as I try to get it off, and run far FAR away. I can hear Muffet's laugh at my slip-up as I leave the room in a hurry.

As I walk out, I notice a poster on a wall. It has a photo of Mettaton in a spotlight on a star-filled night. Apparently the musical was about a tragic tale of two star-crossed lovers, kept apart by the tides of fate. I walk out into an open area and look about.

"OH? THAT HUMAN,"

The robotic voice...that's definitely Mettaton. He peeks out from behind a corner.

"COULD IT BE...MY ONE TRUE LOVE?"

Mettaton comes out from behind the wall and is wearing a white dress. Aaaand it's getting weird. WOW ten seconds since I stepped in the room! That's a new record for how long it takes Mettaton to weird me out. Mettaton comes down the steps, slowly wheeling his way towards me.

'Oh my love...Please run away...'

I start heading towards the exit, but I'm blocked in. I'm forced to sit here and listen to this song play out.

'Monster King...Forbids your stay...'

'Humans must...Live far apart...'

'Even if...It breaks my heart...'

'They'll put you...In the dungeon...'

'It'll suck...And then you'll die a lot'

'Really sad...You're gonna die...'

'Cry cry cry...So sad it's happening...'

The song finally ends and I'm left with an uneasy feeling in my chest.

"SO SAD...SO SAD THAT YOU ARE GOING TO THE DUNGEON," Mettaton says,"WELL, TOODLES!"

Mettaton takes out a remote and presses a button, a trapdoor opens and I fall through it. I land in a sort of a gauntlet. Mettaton flies down and speaks dramatically.

"OH NO! WHATEVER SHALL I DO?" He says,"MY LOVE HAS BEEN CAST AWAY INTO THE DUNGEON,"

Please take off that dress...

"A DUNGEON WITH A PUZZLE SO DASTARDLY, MY PARAMOUR WILL SURELY PERISH!"

Mettaton introduces a color tile maze. I remember this to be just like the one Papyrus had showed me. I smiled at seeing something familar...before realizing I have absolutely no idea how it works. I'm pretty sure Paps went over the instructions, but I just sort of zoned out because they were too complex to follow. Well...there's a first time for everything, right?

I start the puzzle and try to make my way through it. Unfortunately, I wind up getting trapped because the darn fish don't like the scent of oranges.

"OOOOH, I'M SO SORRY! LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE OUT OF TIME!" Mettaton says,"HERE COME THE FLAMES, DARLING!"

Flames started to surround me and get ever closer. I look for a way to escape, but I'm trapped.

"THEY'RE CLOSING IN!" He says,"GETTING! CLOSER! OH MY!"

They're right next to me. I can feel the heat from the flames surround me. I can't move an inch otherwise I'd get burned. Alphys decides that this is the perfect time to call.

"Watch out! I'll save you!" She says,"I'm hacking into the firewall right now!"

"OH NO!" Mettaton says, the flames shutting off,"HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN? FOILED AGAIN BY THE BRILLIANT DOCTOR ALPHYS,"

"Come on, Mettaton, give up already!" Alphys says,"You'll never be able to defeat us...Not as long as we work together! Your puzzle's over...Now go home and leave us alone!"

"PUZZLE? OVER?" Mettaton asks,"ALPHYS, DARLING, WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT...? DID YOU FORGET WHAT THE GREEN TILES DO? THEY MAKE A SOUND, THEN YOU HAVE TO FIGHT A MONSTER. WELL, DARLING, THAT MONSTER IS ME!"

I'm thrust into a FIGHT with Mettaton. I look around for any sign of escape. There's no way I'm going to be able to win against this guy knowing what he did to me not too long ago. Sans remembers it too, oddly enough.

"THIS IS IT, DARLING! SAY GOODBYE!" Mettaton speaks,"...IS THAT YOUR PHONE? YOU'D BETTER ANSWER IT!"

"H-hey! Th-this seems bad, but don't worry!" I hear Alphys voice,"Th-there's one last thing I installed on your phone...!"

"Might wanna hurry up and tell me, Alphys!"

"You see that yellow button?" she asks,"Press it!"

When I press the button, my SOUL turns a yellow coloring. A small toy-like gun appears in my hand and I aim it at Mettaton.

"Now, fire!"

I shoot the gun and it seems to be effective. Mettaton seems to be overreacting about how strong the gun is, but I'm not too concerned with that. I'm focusing on my little revenge from earlier. Mettaton slinks away in a sort of flamboyant fashion.

"Y-you did a really good job out there,"

"It was thanks to YOUR convenience!"

"What? Oh no, I mean...YOU were the one doing everything cool!"

"Alphys, listen, I'm just using the things you made. If it weren't for your excellent programming and hacking, I'd be dead by now! So...thank you, Alphys, for helping me out!"

"...Umm, h-hey, this might sound strange, but...c-can I tell you something?" She asks,"B-before I met you, I d-didn't really...I didn't really like myself that much. For a long time, I f-felt like a total screw up. L-like I couldn't do anything without...without ending up letting everyone down. Guiding you has made me feel...A lot better about myself,"

She pauses for a moment and takes a deep breath. I listen as she continues telling me her thoughts.

"So...thanks for letting me help you," Alphys says,"Uhhh...anyway...we're almost to the CORE. It's just past MTT resort. Come on! Let's finish this!"

I finish talking to Alphys and head outside. I walk outside and see the Nice Cream Man right next to the two Royal Guards I went and met earlier. The man is smiling in a very big way.

"Hey! It's you again!" He cheers,"Business is excellent here! These two fellas bought ALL my ice cream! I've actually sold out of everything!"

He pauses for a moment and seems to have a bit of regret.

"...sorry," he says,"Wait! I've still got something for you!...a big smile! How about that!"

Son of a goat, Nice Cream Man. I leave him and walk over to the two guards from earlier.

"Oh, hey," 01 says,"We're, like, taking a rain check on that killing-you thing. Like, don't tell Undyne about this, OK?"

I look to 02 and he waves at me happily.

 **-88-**

I had met up with Sans and we agreed to hang out within the dining area at MTT Resort. Sans is staring at me with a sort of frustrated look. He isn't smiling his usual smile. I decide to break the silence.

"...Uh...you okay?"

" **...What the hell were you doing!?** " He suddenly snaps," **What was that all for!?** "

"H-hey, c-calm down," I stutter.

" **You nearly died, even after I tried to keep you safe!** " Sans says," **And you want me to calm down!?** "

"I'm alright now!" I reply,"Everything is okay!"

" **No, everything ISN'T okay! You completely put yourself at risk LOADing like that!** " he sighs and holds his skull in his right hand,"i hate making promises..."

"Er...what are you talking about?"

Sans just pauses.

"so, your journey's almost over, huh?" he says,"you must really wanna go home,"

"Well, yeah, my place is above ground!" I respond.

"hey, i know the feeling, buddo," he says,"Though, maybe sometimes it's better to take what's given to you,"

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"down here you've already got food, drink, friends," he says,"is what you have to do...really worth it?"

"Of course it is!" I answer,"I know that the things I'm doing are causing me to get injured, but I have a family that loves having me around! They're probably worried sick about me right now. I know I'm surrounded by friends down here, but you can't replace _family_..."

Sans closes his eyes for a bit and mumbles, as if talking to someone else. He speaks after a few seconds.

"...hey, let me tell you a story," he says,"so, i'm a sentry in snowdin forest, right?"

'i sit out there and watch for humans. it's kind of boring.'

'fortunately, deep in the forest...there's this HUGE locked door.'

'and it's perfect for practicing knock knock jokes'

'so one day, i'm knocking 'em out, like usual'

'i knock on the door and say "knock knock"'

'and suddenly, from the other side...i hear a woman's voice'

'"who is there?"'

'so, naturally, I respond: "dishes"'

'"dishes who?"'

'"dishes a very bad joke."'

'then she just howls with laughter, like it's the best joke she's heard in a hundred years.'

'so I keep 'em coming, and she keeps laughing.'

'she's the best audience i've ever had.'

'then, after a dozen of 'em, SHE knocks and says..."knock knock".'

'i say "whos there?"'

'"old lady!"'

'"old lady who?"'

'"oh! I did not know you could yodel!"'

'wow, needless to say, this woman was extremely good.'

'we kept telling each other jokes for hours.'

'eventually, i had to leave. papyrus gets kind of cranky without his bedtime story. but she told me to come by again, and so i did.'

'then i did again. and again. it's a thing now. telling bad jokes through the door.'

'one day, though, i noticed she wasn't laughing very much.'

'i asked her what was up.'

'then she told me something strange...'

'"if a human ever comes through this door...could you please, please promise something?'

'"watch over them, and protect them, will you not?"'

'now, i hate making promises, like i said before.'

'and this woman, i don't even know her name.'

'but...someone who sincerely likes bad jokes...'

'has an integrity you can't say "no" to'

Sans pauses and stares off for a small bit.

"do you get what i'm saying? that promise i made to her...you know what would have happened if she hadn't said anything?" he asks,"...buddy..."

' **...You'd be dead where you stand.** '

I flinch and give a frown. I start to think about who would protect me and why.

"hey, lighten up, bucko!" Sans says, noticing my frown,"i'm just joking with you,"

That frown still keeps itself on my face, undisturbed and not going anywhere anytime soon. Sans' smile falters a bit, noticing that I'm still bothered by his 'joke'.

"b-besides," Sans starts,"haven't i done a great job protecting you?"

That's true, he's done a fantastic job at helping me in any way he can. I owe part of my survival to him, that is for certain.

"i mean, look at yourself," he says,"you haven't...died a single time,"

I notice that Sans had hesitated to finish that sentence. He turns away for a small bit and I notice one of his eye sockets is faintly glowing a blue color. He must be still angry at me about my recklessness. He takes out a case and slides it over to me. I open it and my clarinet is inside, good as new.

"Thanks, Sans!" I say, smiling.

I look at the clarinet for a small bit. I think about what I could play on it before settling on something. I decide to play the tune of the music box I heard inside of the statue. Sans listens for a bit, his eyes back to normal. That stressed look he had while he was talking to someone the other night appears for a split second before he looks completely relaxed. I had to stop because he looked just about ready to fall over into a complete sleep.

"Sans," I ask him.

"yeah, kid?" he responds.

"Why are you always so tired?"

"can't sleep,"

"Why not?"

"i'm always listening to someone,"

"Who?"

"..."

"Sans?"

"..."

Sans gets up and walks away from the table. He turns around and looks at me, his left eye half closed. He must be worn out.

"well, take care of yourself, kid," he says,"'cause someone really cares about you,"

He walks away shortly after that. I put my clarinet back into the case and strap it on my back. As I look about the dining area, I tilt my head towards the floor and close my eyes.

"Thank you, Toriel. I miss you," I say to myself.

* * *

 **Soooo, how'd I do on this chapter? I don't know if this has the same amount of humor as the other chapters or if it's chock full of powerful messages. Also, yay for Anna getting her clarinet fixed!**

 **Also, regarding Sans, that 'person' he said he was listening to is the same one from the other chapter. I still want you guys to try and get a clear picture of who it might be. Like I said, it's a VERY special character...**

 **Anyways, if you enjoyed the chapter, please review, follow, or favorite! Until then!**


	12. The CORE

**OOOH! IT'S HAPPENING! THE INTRODUCTION OF THE MOST FAAAABULOUS ENEMY IN THE ENTIRE GAME! HE DOESN'T EVEN NEED ARMS TO BE MIIIILES AHEAD OF EVERYBODY! *Ahem* Sorry about that, I was just going over how (Spoilers) is completely awesome. I really really enjoyed making this chapter. I hope you enjoy it! Until then!**

* * *

MTT Resort wasn't a big place. The fountain in the center of the lobby had water pouring out of the statue's chest and onto the floor. Nobody seemed too concerned about it, so I payed it no mind as well. I sit at a spot on the floor and write in my diary. I went and bought a Glamburger from Burgerpants. His face sort of weirded me out at times. He would pull his face into expressions that were probably the spawn of nightmare fuel.

He tries his best to put on this 'convincing' smile, but it just makes me want to keep my distance from him. He also seems to enjoy giving advice. He cautions me to not waste my life and end up like him. There was also this time where he apparently had his pants fall down in front of the two girls in the alley. So...that's why everyone calls him Burgerpants. The knowledge he had of the place impressed me. Apparently, Mettaton wants to style his resort like how 'people do it on the surface'. Though, I don't know how Mettaton knows what our resorts look like.

I knocked on some of the hotel doors, but there were only people asking for room service. One of them was locked from the inside, but it sounded like nobody was in there. There was this janitor at the end of the hallway, mopping about. I wanted to slide something under the last door, but nothing I had was decent.

I get bored of the resort and head to the CORE. It was dark when I had stepped outside, and it looked like nobody was around. But as I walk forward, I see two tall black figures standing at the edge of the path. Luckily, they were faced away from me and so I just slipped under the radar.

As I walk inside of the CORE, I see two paths that lead into different rooms. There was an elevator right in front of me, but it was locked. Alphys calls me shortly after.

"Ready? This is it!" She says.

I choose to go on the left path since the right was a dead end. As I step in the room, two figures jump out and attack me. The first one looked like a sort of witch. It had two orbs floating around it in a sort of swaying motion. One of the orbs fired crosses at me and would constantly change where it was. It would only stay at the corners of my allowed range. I try to talk to it, but it just sort of interrupted me. It allowed me to SPARE it shortly after.

"T-that was close," Alphys says,"Wh...why are there so many monsters here? I mean...it's no problem, right?"

I make it to the next room. It's a laser puzzle apparently. I look at the room and realize I can't go any farther. There's a barrier in the way. Alphys calls me when she notices this.

"Looks like you can't proceed until you hit the switch,"she says,"B-but, those lasers will activate when you do,"

So I have to be ready as soon as I flip the switch? That doesn't seem like too much of an issue to me.

"Ummm...Looks like they'll come in this order: Orange. Orange. Blue. Got it? Move until the third one!"

I press the button and realize that she was wrong. It was actually blue, blue again, then orange. I was okay because I noticed the blue before it hit me. As I pass through the path, Alphys rings me up.

"Oh my god, are you okay?" she worries,"I...I'm sorry, I gave you the wrong order,"

"No worries, Alphys," I reassure,"It was only one mistake,"

"...E-everything's fine, alright?" She says,"L-let's just keep heading to the right,"

When I get to the crossroads, Alphys directs me to head to the right. I start heading in that direction before curiosity takes over and forces me to head the other way. It's a dead end and I'm attacked by another enemy. When I use 'Check' it addresses itself as Knight Knight.

It's attack was like some sort of meteor shower. It was pretty to look at, but deadly to get hit with. Some of its attacks were shaky and it was slumped over. This reminded me of how tired Sans had been. What if this monster was just like him at that moment? I take off my instrument case, open it up, take out my clarinet, and start playing the music box song.

However, it wasn't enough and the monster starts to slam its morning star down on the ground shaking me off balance. Thinking of something else, I remember Shyren's song. I play that on my clarinet and it seems to be working to some effect. Knight Knight had dropped its morning star, fell over, and started snoring.

When I get to the text room, Alphys doesn't play around and shuts off all of the power. I walk across the path without any disturbance before Alphys calls again.

"W-WAIT!" She yells,"STOP!"

I freeze and blue lasers faze through me. My eyes are wide with fear, and I'm trying my best not to move an inch.

"Th-the power...it's turning itself back on," She says,"D-damn it...Th-this isn't supposed to...I'm gonna turn it off again. When it turns off, move a little, and then STOP,"

I listen to her. Luckily, the power flickers right before it turns on so it made it easy to deal with. I mentally thank myself for letting Alphys help me out.

"S-see? I've got everything under control," Alphys said,"Everything's under control,"

I reach the next room and Alphys tells me that she can't help me any longer. This is because she doesn't have the same map as me anymore. She then claims she needs to go for a bit. As I walk along the path, I'm attacked by an Astigmatism. It looked like a short cyclops. It had one gigantic eye and three eyelashes.

It had four horns and walked on two legs. Unlike Loox at the RUINS, this one wanted me to pick on it. So, I did. It seemed content with my decision and left me alone. I decided to explore the CORE for a bit. I stumbled across another puzzle where I had to shoot the enemy ship. I passed it rather easily and found 100G inside of a lone trashcan on another path. Then, I made my way to this long hallway-like path.

Monsters jump out and attack me before I get too far on the path. I looked at the two of the enemies. They look like the monsters I've fought back in the RUINS. I look towards Whimsun, now Whimsalot, and I try to console it like I tried to back in the RUINS. It just refuses. Looks like it finally stopped worrying.

"I've made my peace,"

Its attack was strong and fast. Combined with the other, a Froggit, it was nearly devastating. I could only pray that the Whimsalot remembers who I am. Eventually, Whimsalot stops attacking me and allows me to spare it. Froggit, now Final Froggit, seems intent on continuing the battle, however.

"Froggit, your family and friends at home are probably so worried about you!" I say,"You need to get back to them as soon as you can!"

Froggit thinks for a bit before realizing that it should get going. As it hops off, the battle ends. I continue walkinig down the dark path before Astigmatism jumps out, ready for another fight. Whimsalot, having not left the room, initiates a FIGHT with it and keeps it busy. It tells me to press the button at the end and flee. I listen to it, and continue wandering around the CORE.

I'm attacked by Knight Knight again. Figuring that playing Shyren's song wouldn't work twice, I play another tune on my clarinet. I remember Toriel humming a song to herself as she went about her home in the RUINS. So, I play that song. Unlike last time, where it fought sleep, Knight Knight just collapses and starts snoring loudly. It must have woken up just a while ago and found me.

(It's the song in Toriel's home. Not the music box version, though.)

I reach a brightly lit path and continue down it. As I reach the end, Astigmatism, Final Froggit, Whimsalot, Madjick, and Knight Knight are there. Astigmatism was being restrained by Knight Knight and Whimsalot. Looks like its bullying days are coming to an end.

I take out my diary and write down everything that's happened so far: my conversation with Sans, the journey through the CORE, my oncoming FIGHT with Mettaton. I'm about to head to the next room before a tiny hand is placed on my shoulder. I turn around to see the monsters staring at me.

"Goodbye, for now," Whimsalot says.

Final Froggit gives a farewell croak.

Madjick cackles and waves.

"You've seen enough," Astigmatism,"Get going!"

"...Adieu," Knight Knight says.

 **-88-**

"OH YES. THERE YOU ARE, DARLING," Mettaton says,"IT'S TIME TO HAVE OUR LITTLE SHOWDOWN. IT'S TIME TO FINALLY STOP THE 'MALFUNCTIONING' ROBOT...NOT! MALFUCTION? REPROGRAMMING? GET REAL,"

"But, wait...Alphys had said-"

"ALPHYS HAS BEEN PLAYING YOU FOR A FOOL THE WHOLE TIME," Mettaton explains,"THIS WAS ALL JUST A BIG SHOW, AN ACT. AS SHE WATCHED OUT ON THE SCREEN, SHE GREW ATTACHED TO YOUR ADVENTURE. SHE DESPERATELY WANTED TO BE A PART OF IT."

"So, Alphys had...lied?" I hesitate to finish the question.

"SHE INSERTED HERSELF INTO YOUR STORY. SHE REACTIVATED PUZZLES, SHE DISABLED EVELATORS, SHE ENLISTED ME TO TORMENT YOU," Mettaton says,"ALL SO SHE COULD SAVE YOU FROM DANGERS THAT DIDN'T EXIST. ALL SO YOU WOULD THINK SHE'S THE GREAT PERSON THAT SHE'S NOT,"

'AT THIS VERY MOMENT ALPHYS IS WAITING OUTSIDE THE ROOM.'

'DURING OUR "BATTLE", SHE WILL INTERRUPT.'

'SHE WILL PRETEND TO "DEACTIVATE" ME, "SAVING" YOU ONE FINAL TIME.'

'FINALLY. SHE'LL BE THE HEROINE OF YOUR ADVENTURE.'

'YOU'LL REGARD HER SO HIGHLY SHE'LL EVEN BE ABLE TO CONVINCE YOU NOT TO LEAVE...OR NOT.'

"YOU SEE, I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS PREDICTABLE CHARADE," Mettaton finishes,"I HAVE NO DESIRE TO HARM HUMANS. FAR FROM IT, ACTUALLY. MY ONLY DESIRE IS TO ENTERTAIN,"

I take all of his words in. I let myself be tricked to the ground. I trusted her and she lied to me. Does that mean that the only reason she took me back to Snowdin was to help me continue my adventure? Just so the could be a part of it? That's selfish...

"AFTER ALL, THE AUDIENCE DESERVES A GOOD SHOW, DON'T THEY?" Mettaton says,"AND WHAT'S A GOOD SHOW WITHOUT A PLOT TWIST?"

"H-hey! Wh-wh-what's going on!?" Alphys says,"Th-th-the door just locked itself!"

I clench my fist hearing Alphy's voice. Mettaton was telling the truth after all.

"SORRY, FOLKS! THE OLD PROGRAM'S BEEN CANCELLED!" Mettaton says,"BUT WE'VE GOT A FINALE THAT WILL DRIVE YOU WILD!"

Spotlights begin to appear and the floor starts to ascend to new heights quickly.

"REAL DRAMA! REAL ACTION! REAL BLOODSHED!" Mettaton says,"ON OUR NEW SHOW...ATTACK OF THE KILLER ROBOT!"

-88-

My SOUL was yellow, but the toy gun did nothing to Mettaton this time. I was a sitting duck out here and I'd burn if things continued this way.

"YES, I WAS THE ONE THAT RE-ARRANGED THE CORE!" Mettaton says,"I WAS THE ONE THAT HIRED EVERYONE TO KILL YOU!"

So Alphys was telling the truth about how the map didn't match what she saw. At least that was ONE thing I could trust her for.

"THAT, HOWEVER, WAS A SHORT SIGHTED PLAN,"Mettaton explains,"YOU KNOW WHAT WOULD BE A HUNDRED TIMES BETTER? KILLING YOU MYSELF!

"Why kill me? And why KILL!?"

"LISTEN, DARLING. I'VE SEEN YOU FIGHT," Mettaton says,"YOU'RE WEAK,"

Mettaton doesn't pull his punches this time. Every slip-up he's noticed I've had, he claims it'll cause ASGORE to take my soul and use it to destroy humanity. He sends blocks after me, but I manage to break past them using my toy gun.

"BUT IF I GET YOUR SOUL, I CAN STOP ASGORE'S PLAN," He claims,"I CAN SAVE HUMANITY FROM DESTRUCTION,"

He sends these long arm-like things after me. If I shoot the yellow part, the slide out of the way.

"THEN, USING YOUR SOUL, I'LL CROSS THROUGH THE BARRIER...AND BECOME THE STAR I'VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF BEING!" Mettaton boasts.

I see something new, a bomb. I shoot it and back out of the way. Instead of exploding in a radius, it shoots out in lines. One of them headed in the direction I used to be standing.

"SO WHAT IF A FEW PEOPLE HAVE TO DIE?" He asks,"THAT'S SHOW BUSINESS, BABY!"

Alphys starts to call and I just pick it up without a word.

"U...uh...I can't see what's going on in there, but...D-d-don't give up, okay!? Th...there's o-one l-l-last way to beat Mettaton..."Alphys says,"This is a work in-progress, so don't judge it too hard. You know how Mettaton always faces f-f-forward?"

"Of course, he seems very proud about his front, too," I respond.

"That's because there's a switch on his backside," She answers,"S-s-so, if y-y-you c-c-can turn him around...um...and, umm...press th-th-th-the switch...He'll be...um...He'll be...vulnerable,"

I tried to hear Alphys over her stuttering.

"W-Well, g-g-gotta go!" She says,"Th-these guys, um, d-don't want me near the door..."

She must be talking about the monsters out there. I look at Mettaton and give a smirk.

"Uh, Mettaton, there's a mirror behind you," I lie,"Make yourself presentable!"

"OH? A MIRROR?" He asks,"RIGHT, I HAVE TO LOOK PERFECT FOR OUR GRAND FINALE,"

Mettaton turns around, but starts making sounds of confusion. I stare at the switch on his back. I sorta found it obvious because there was an arrow that pointed directly towards it, labelled "SWITCH".

"HMMM...I DON'T SEE IT...WHERE IS IT...?" Mettaton says to himself.

While he's distracted, I hurriedly flip the switch on his back. As soon as a sound plays out, he freezes.

"DID YOU. JUST FLIP. MY SWITCH?" He asks before shaking around like crazy.

The room darkens before two spotlights and smoke appear. A black silhouette shows a different figure than the boxy one I had saw earlier.

"Ohhhh my," I hear a voice says,"If you flipped my switch, that can only mean one thing. You're desperate for the premiere of my new body. How rude...lucky for you, I've been aching to show this off for a long time. So...as thanks, I'll give you a handsome reward. I'll make your last living moments...ABSOLUTELY beautiful!"

The smoke clears and I'm left with a VERY different looking Mettaton. He had much more of a slender shape than before. I see the room brighten to reveal a large crowd surrounding us. A ratings board appears at the top and shows the number, four thousand, dropping a bit quickly. I look towards Mettaton.

"You know, Mettaton, I'll prove to you that I'm strong enough for ASGORE," I say,"I'm going to dodge every attack you launch at me. That's right, I'm not going to get hit at ALL,"

The crowd starts to cheer and I see the ratings bar do a fast increase. That put me at about 5,982 in ratings.

"Oooh, it's time for a pop quiz!" Mettaton says,"I hope you brought a keyboard,"

The question was asking me 'What do I love the most about Mettaton?' I refused to answer because as of now, I'm pretty much done with Mettaton.

"Speechless...?" He says,"Who can blame you?"

Mettaton goes back to doing poses like he was doing the entire fight. Mettaton was oddly flexible for being made of metal. He could do an entire split and not flinch a single time while doing it. I manage to pose even while being hurt. That boosted the ratings up by a large amount.

"Your essay really showed everyone your heart," Mettaton says,"Why don't I show you mine?"

His heart LITERALLY comes out of his center and floats around. I stare at it with a creeped out look. If you think about it for a second, his SOUL literally separated itself from its body and is attacking me at this very moment. It sent out electrical charges and small versions of Mettaton came down from the ceiling, holding an umbrella. I used my toy guns to shoot the heart that Mettaton had. It seemed to be effective since he puffed smoke.

"Ooooh, I'm just warming up!" Mettaton says,"But how are you on the dance floor?"

A disco ball comes down and projects two sets of light. Blue and white. I don't move when the blue one passes and shoot the disco ball to change the white coloring to blue.

"We've grown so distant, darling," Mettaton says,"How about another heart-to-heart?"

YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME! I'M OBVIOUSLY GOING TO DISTANCE MYSELF FROM YOU! Also...there's no way a robot should be able to pose that quickly. I shoot the heart again and it causes Mettaton's arms to fall off.

"Er...Mettaton," I start,"How...are you going to get your arms back?"

"A...arms? Wh...who needs arms with legs like these?" Mettaton says,"I'm still going to win!"

Smoke pours out of where his arms used to be. I stare at it in a weird way. Mettaton sends his attack after me, but then makes it so that the attack starts to come back at me. I see the letters "REW" meaning "rewind" pop up on the screen.

"Enough of this!" Mettaton demands,"Do you really want humanity to perish!?...Or do you just believe in yourself that much?"

He sends bombs after me and I shoot them. After they exploded, I was given a path through the blocks he sent after me. He didn't "rewind" like last time so I was safe.

"Haha! How inspiring! Well, darling, it's either me or you!" Mettaton says,"But I think we both already know who's going to win. Witness the true power of humanity's star!"

His heart appears again and this time, he has bombs surrounding it. I tried my best to shoot the heart without activating any of the bombs, but, unfortunately I get hurt from them. His legs finally fall off and he's left with just his head and chest. I pose one last time and then...

"OOH, LOOK AT THESE RATINGS! THIS IS THE MOST VIEWERS I'VE EVER HAD!" Mettaton cheers,"WE'VE REACHED THE VIEWER CALL-IN MILESTONE!"

I look at the ratings. It shows an incredible number of 10, 947. If I said I wasn't impressed, I'd be lying. 10, 947 people are watching us at this very moment.

"ONE LUCKY VIEWER WILL HAVE THE CHANCE TO TALK TO ME BEFORE I LEAVE THE UNDERGROUND FOREVER!" Mettaton says,"LET'S SEE WHO CALLS IN FIRST!"

A phone rings.

"HI, YOU'RE ON TV!" Mettaton says,"WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY ON THIS, OUR LAST SHOW?"

At that moment, a solemn voice plays out on the phone.

"oh...hi...mettaton...i really liked watching your show...my life is pretty boring...but...seeing you on the screen...brought excitement to my life...vicariously," it says,"i can't tell, but...i guess this is the last episode...? i'll miss you...mettaton,"

The person on the phone sounds like Napstablook. That disappointed voice could only come from him. I'd know it anywhere. Mettaton has his eyes closed with a saddened look on his face. I actually feel a bit of sympathy for the guy, even if he DID try to kill me just a second ago.

"...oh...i didn't mean to talk so long...oh..."

"NO. WAIT! WAIT, PL-...THEY ALREADY HUNG UP..."Mettaton sighs,"I'LL TAKE ANOTHER CALLER!"

Instead of one more caller coming in, a bunch started to call.

"Mettaton, your show made us so happy!"

"Mettaton, I don't know what I'll watch without you,"

"Mettaton, there's a Mettaton-shaped hole in my Mettaton-shaped heart,"

"AH...I...EVERYONE...THANK YOU SO MUCH," Mettaton falters,"DARLING, PERHAPS IT MIGHT BE BETTER IF I STAY HERE FOR A WHILE. HUMANS ALREADY HAVE STARS AND IDOLS, BUT MONSTERS...THEY ONLY HAVE ME,"

'IF I LEFT THE UNDERGROUND WOULD LOSE ITS SPARK.'

'I'D LEAVE AN ACHING VOID THAT CAN NEVER BE FILLED.'

'SO...I THINK I'LL HAVE TO DELAY MY BIG DEBUT.'

'BESIDES, YOU'VE PROVEN TO BE VERY STRONG'

'PERHAPS...EVEN STRONG ENOUGH TO GET PAST ASGORE'

'I'M SURE YOU'LL BE ABLE TO PROTECT HUMANITY.'

'IT'S ALL FOR THE BEST, ANYWAY.'

"THE TRUTH IS, THIS FORM'S ENERGY CONSUMPTION IS...INEFFICIENT," Mettaton explains,"IN A FEW MOMENTS, I'LL RUN OUR OF BATTERY POWER. AND...WELL...I'LL BE ALRIGHT. KNOCK 'EM DEAD, DARLING. AND EVERYONE...THANK YOU. YOU'VE BEEN A GREAT AUDIENCE!,"

Mettaton's eyes fade to black and he shuts off. I can hear Alphys' voice from behind me.

"I...I managed to open the lock! Are you two...Oh my god,"

Alphys comes from behind me and notices mettaton. She walks up to it and checks for any issues.

"Mettaton! Mettaton, are you...thank GOD, it's just the batteries. Mettaton, if you were gone, I would have...I would have..." Alphys says,"I m-mean, h-hey, it's n-no problem, you know? He's just a robot, if you messed it up, I c-could always...J-just build another,"

She didn't seem too happy about saying that. I could understand, it's hard to replace something that you hold close to you. Even if that something is easily replaceable, the fact that it stuck with you for so long makes it hard to.

"Why don't you go on ahead?"

So, listening to Alphys for one last time, I head to the next part of the CORE. Alphys follows up behind me shortly after.

"S-sorry about that!" She says,"L-let's k-keep going!"

As I walk ahead, Alphys starts to speak.

"S-so you're about to meet ASGORE, h-huh?" she asks,"You must be...Y-you must be...Pr...pretty excited about all that, huh?"

'You'll finally...you'll f-f-finally get to go home!"

I walk ahead in silence and reach an elevator. As I open the door, Alphys speaks.

"W-Wait!" she calls out.

I look behind me and she seems to mentally kick herself for that.

"I mean, um...I...I was just going to...um...Say goodbye, and..."

She tries to put on a convincing smile, but it just fades away and she frowns, looking at the ground.

"I can't take this anymore," She says, turning away,"I...I lied to you. A human SOUL isn't strong enough to cross the barrier alone. It takes at least a human soul...and a monster soul,"

She turns to me, still frowning.

"If you want to go home...You'll have to take his soul. You'll have to kill ASGORE," She explains.

I pick this time to say something back to her. It's something I've wanted to know all this time.

"Is what Mettaton said also true? That this entire charade of me being in danger was an act?"

"W-what?" she says, finally looking at me.

"Mettaton said that you faked my danger just to be a part of my adventure. That this was all a 'big show' just so I would think you were an amazing person," I ask her.

She just stares at me in silence and she just turns and walks away.

"I'm sorry..."

She says that and quickly runs off to who-knows-where. I get into the elevator and begin to head upwards.

While I'm inside, I think over Alphys' words. If I wanted to leave...I'd actually have to take the life of another...

"I'll find a way out of the UNDERGROUND. I'll find a way without killing ASGORE," I say to myself.

"It's either that or nothing..."

* * *

 **AND THAT'S A WRAP! It took me quite some time to get this all done. I woke up in the morning and started typing this. Like last time, I got sidetracked a bit. I actually wanted to upload this while the day was still going. Aaaanyways...something special is going to happen in the next chapter. I won't say what it is tho. Be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this chapter! Until then!**


	13. Final Judgment

**IT'S FINALLY STARTING! I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS MOMENT. I told you guys that something would happen in this chapter. Well, I sincerely hope that it doesn't disappoint in the slightest! After all, said character would be VERY upset if you WERE disappointed. This new character is going to surprise you. BELIEVE ME. I got even more excited to make this chapter when I saw fanmade Undertale songs on YouTube. They're more impressive that what you think. Especially when some of the songs wind up being remixes of songs already in the game. Anyways, like I said, this chapter was so much fun to make! So...have fun with the chapter!**

 **This is the end of the Author's Note. Please stop reading this text.**

* * *

As the elevator opens, I see a gray coloring on everything. I step outside and walk for a bit. Reaching a safe place, I take out my diary and write down what happened with Mettaton and his audience. I write down Alphys' words. I still can't believe to leave the UNDERGROUND, I'd have to actually KILL someone. I can't do that! As much as it'd be much easier than working around it...

I walk to another area and realize that EVERYTHING is gray! There were buildings out in the distance that were the same gray coloring as the ground I walked upon. I reach a narrow path and continue upwards until I reached what looked like another house. It bore a strong resemblance to Toriel's home. The only difference was that it way gray.

I walk directly in front of it and write my walk through this area down in my diary. As I walked inside, I saw that it was gray too! The only thing that was a different color were the golden flowers in a small vase on a table. I couldn't go below the house because the path to it was padlocked shut. Though, there was a note attached.

'Howdy! I'm in the garden. If you have anything you need to get off your chest, please don't hesitate to come. The keys are in the kitchen and the hallway.'

Well, whoever put this note here is a really nice person! I smile a bit at the words written on the note. As I walk towards the kitchen, I notice that the living room looks exactly like Toriel's. Again, a golden flower was sitting in a vase. It was in complete contrast to the grayness of the house. The bookcase had recipes on how to make tea. So...this person likes making tea...I could hear voices speaking as I walked.

'A long time ago, a human fell into the RUINS. Injured by its fall, the human called out for help.'

Finally reaching the kitchen, I grab the key off the counter. There was some white fur stuck in the sink drain. I took this small time to read a note that was on the counter.

'Howdy! Help yourself to anything you want!'

Howdy...that word sounds like something I've heard from someone before...Flowey? Yeah, Flowey said that. Like Toriel's stove, this one also had a clean stovetop. Instead of using the fire on it, they must use fire magic. The trashcan was filled with crumpled-up recipes for butterscotch pie. Toriel had made me a cinnamon-butterscotch pie before. Speaking of which, I should start eating that. I'll get it when I find a box. I made my way back to the living room where I heard more voices.

'ASRIEL, the king's son, heard the human's call. He brought the human back to the castle.'

In the hallway, again, golden flowers there too. This person obviously loves golden flowers because they're practically everywhere! I walk into what looks to be a kid's room. Wait...it's for two people, not one...There were two beds in this room. There were two presents on the ground. A heart-shaped locket was within one of them. I take it off and open it.

There was a kid inside that looked an awful lot like Frisk...there was one other person. The kid looked just like Toriel. I'll assume they're related...family maybe? I put it around my neck and look in the other one.

The other present had a dagger inside of it... I sighed and looked at it for a second...If the time comes...I'll have something usable. I take the dagger out and it fades into my ITEMS. I was out in the hallway again when I heard even more voices.

'Over time, ASRIEL and the human became like siblings. The King and Queen treated the human child as their own. The underground was full of hope.'

So...maybe that kid I saw back there was the first child to have fallen down in the UNDERGROUND. And that goat-kid must have been Asriel. That means he's Asgore's son. Now the Queen...could it be Toriel? It would certainly make some sense. Not only is this house a near exact replica of Toriel's home, he has butterscotch pie recipes in his kitchen trashcan. Queen Toriel...it sounds a bit strange when I say it. Probably because nobody I've met said anything about her.

I take the second key off of a small table. I walk into the room next to it and notice that the room is basically a flipped version of Toriel's. Yep, I'm set. King Asgore and Queen Toriel...it still sounds strange. I notice a trophy on the floor and read it.

'Number 1 Nose-Nuzzle Champs '90!'

I think the Dogi from before said they were Number 2. So...they were beaten by Toriel and Asgore. Asgore really sounds like a nice guy! I'm sure he and I could make some sort of negotiation. I'll escape from the UNDERGROUND and help the monsters come with me. I unlock the padlocked door and continue below the home. More voices started speaking.

'Then...One day...The human became very ill.'

An illness? I sincerely hope that person was okay. I don't like the thought of families being broken up. If I had lost my family...I don't know what I'd do.

'The sick human had only one request. To see the flowers form their village. But there was nothing we could do.

'The next day...The next day...The human died.'

'ASRIEL, wracked with grief, absorbed the human's SOUL. He transformed into a being with incredible power.'

'With the human SOUL, ASRIEL crossed through the barrier. He carried the human's body into the sunset. Back to the village of the humans.'

'ASRIEL reached the center of the village. There, he found a bed of golden flowers. He carried the human onto it.'

'Suddenly, screams rang out. The villagers saw ASRIEL holding the human's body. They thought that he had killed the child.'

'The humans attacked him with everything they had. He was struck with blow after blow. ASRIEL had the power to destroy them all.'

'But...ASRIEL did not fight back. Clutching the human...ASRIEL smiled, and walked away.'

'Wounded, ASRIEL stumbled home. He entered the castle and collapsed. His dust spread across the garden.'

'The kingdom fell into despair. The king and queen had lost two children in one night. The humans had once again taken everything from us.'

'The King decided it was time to end our suffering. Every human who falls down here must die. With enough souls, we can shatter the barrier forever.'

'It's not long now. King ASGORE will let us go, give us hope, and save us all.'

'You should be smiling, too. Aren't you excited? Aren't you happy?'

I realize that they're speaking to me. I pick up my pace and start running.

'You're going to be free.'

"NO I'M NOT!" I finally yell out,"You expect me to be happy, enthusiastic about all of this!? I'M GOING TO DIE IF YOU GUYS WANT TO BE FREE!"

I don't know what I was yelling at. Nobody was around me. I silently sob and reach another path. I head inside and I see pillars all around me. I was in some sort of giant hallway. I take my diary out and wrote down what I heard from the voices during my walk. I put it away and continue on down the hallway.

There were clock symbols floating around in some spots. Things looked like time completely stopped here. Flowey DID say that time was being screwed up because of Frisk's RESETs. Maybe that's why these clock symbols have popped up here. I walk ahead, my head down and eyes closed, before feeling a presence. I look up to see Sans standing near me.

"So you finally made it," he says,"The end of your journey is at hand,"

'In a few moments, you will meet the king.'

'Together...you will determine the future of this world.'

'That's then. Now. You will be judged.'

'You will be judged for your every action. You will be judged for every EXP you've earned.'

'What's EXP? It's an acronym.'

'It stands for "Execution Points".'

'A way of quantifying the pain you have inflicted on others.'

'When you kill someone, your EXP increases.'

'When you have enough EXP, your LOVE increases.'

'LOVE, too, is an acronym.'

'It stands for "Level of Violence".'

'A way of measuring someone's capacity to hurt.'

'The more you kill, the easier it becomes to distance yourself.'

'The more you distance yourself, the less you will hurt.'

'The more easily you can bring yourself to hurt others.'

"but you, you never gained any love,"Sans says,"'course, that doesn't mean you're completely innocent or naive,"

I swore I could hear him say "believe me, I know".

"just that you kept a certain tenderness in your heart," he says,"no matter the struggles or hardships you faced...you strived to do the right thing. you refused to hurt anyone. even when you ran away, you did it with a smile,"

'you never gained LOVE, but you gained love.'

'does that make sense? maybe not.'

'...now, you're about to face the greatest challenge of your entire journey.'

'your actions here...will determine the fate of the entire world.'

'if you refuse to fight...asgore will take your soul and destroy humanity.'

'but if you kill asgore and go home...monsters will remain trapped underground.'

"What will you do?" Sans asks me.

"I...honestly have no idea," I say to him,"I don't want to KILL anybody, but things just aren't working in my favor anymore,"

"Things aren't going right, huh? Things are just getting dark...darker...yet darker," I hear a voice say,"Nothing ever goes the way it's supposed to, maybe? Or...was it fated to happen?"

A tall figure slowly comes out from one of the floating clock symbols. It looked like another skeleton. It was about a foot taller than Papyrus, height. It looks around a bit and stretches its legs, as if it hadn't stood in quite a while. It wore a sort of black coat. It's skull was cracked and had lines coming from both of its eyes that went off the skull. It's mouth was pulled into the creepiest smile I'd ever seen in my entire life. I don't know why, but I feel like running. I resist the urge to flee the room and never come back here.

The monster turns to me and speaks.

"Onto more important matters, hello, Anna," It says,"My name is W.D. Gaster,"

I just back away and Sans steps in front of me, arms spread outwards in a protective way.

"how are you...here?" Sans asks.

"I don't even know myself. Maybe it's the RESETs..."He says,"Either way, I'm here,"

"Who's your friend?" I ask.

"after what he said the other day, i'm starting to doubt the word 'friend'," Sans says.

"But you KNOW it's still a possibility!" Gaster says,"Just look at how she acted the other day,"

"s-she wanted to help us escape," Sans argues,"if she waited any longer, that couldn't happen!"

"Be honest, you're mad about it, still...Well, now that she's okay...what's going to happen? After this is all over, I mean..." Gaster asks,"Maybe she'll get bored and RESET the timeline like Frisk did so many times...or...maybe she'll become a second Chara..."

"she-"

"Don't,"Gaster interrupts,"Even when the problem stared you in the face for the first time, you saw Anna there, completely wounded, and did nothing,"

"i thought that maybe there was a chance i could prevent that," Sans said,"maybe i could stop her from doing a RESET,"

"Well, if you're not going to stop it for GOOD...I'll do it," Gaster says, looking at me,"Now that I'm here, if there's a chance for me to protect this world, I'll take it,"

"What does he mean, Sans?" I ask.

Sans turns his skull to me.

"...kid, let me explain something,"Sans says,"you can SAVE and LOAD, like frisk used to, right?"

I nod.

"well, you can RESET too," Sans said,"i'm able to remember things if you LOAD a previous point. as for RESETs...they come as nightmares. very painful, vivid nightmares. in one of them, you killed everyone..."

"W-what?" I ask,"Why would I-"

"i started to ignore it the first time,"Sans explains,"i assumed it was just me meeting you for the first time and my mind replacing frisk with yourself. but, then-"

"But then it became more frequent,"Gaster interrupts,"It got more descriptive and frightening...well, to Sans, anyway. I wasn't around to witness it,"

"so...gaster decided that the best option would be to kill you," Sans says,"or at least kill you so many times you resolve to giving up instead of LOADing and trying again,"

"While this timeline is still okay, I'm stopping the madness before it starts," Gaster says.

He then promptly summons two goat-like skulls to his side. They fire a beam at me. A wall of bones appear and block the attack.

"Sans," Gaster says,"Out of the way..."

"if you want to hurt anna," Sans says," **You'll have to go through me first,** "

I look at Sans a bit closer before noticing that his left eye is burning a blue coloring again. He has a tense look on his face. Gaster isn't smiling anymore. He actually seems a bit worried about Sans.

"Sans, I don't want to hurt you..." Gaster says.

" **You crossed that point once you fired those Gaster Blasters,** " Sans said.

Sans then takes his hand and begins to throw Gaster about. I watch as he's slammed into the walls, ceiling, and floor. I look on in horror as Sans and Gaster shoot at each other with the blasters. Gaster manages to shrug most of it off, but he has a noticeable limp now. He blocks a blast using bones. They seemed to be equally matched in strength. I run behind a pillar and wonder how much these two know about each other. I start to walk out from behind the pillar and run a small bit behind Sans

Gaster had stronger blasters, but Sans cancelled that out with the strong bone attacks he had. I step forward for a bit before Sans shoves me back, knocking me out of the way of a gaster blaster. Sans isn't able to dodge in time and winds up taking the entire blast. He stumbles from the blast and throws Gaster about some more. They both winded up critically injured and looked like they were about to collapse. Eventually, Gaster falls over, but he doesn't scatter to dust. I walk up to him.

" **Anna!** " Sans cautions.

"It's fine, Sans," I say,"I'll be okay,"

"I-I can't l-let you..." Gaster starts, trying, unsuccessfully, to get up.

"Gaster, I know it's hard to put your trust in someone," I say,"From what Sans had been through, I've caused a lot of trouble for you guys, huh? I'm sorry,"

"it's not your fault, kid!" Sans reassures.

"It IS my fault, Sans," I respond,"I was the person you saw in the nightmares, right? That means...it was me,"

"that hasn't happened yet! for all we know, it's probably just crazy stuff!"

"Gaster, I've been through so much on this journey. Everyone has been so kind. Even though I haven't been always given the warmest welcomes, everyone proved to be amazing and understandable people," I explain,"I know that you're worried that I'll ruin everything for you guys and keep you trapped underground, but...I promise I'll do the right thing,"

Gaster just stares at me, he slowly gets up, but his leg shakes a small bit.

"Listen...do you know how it feels to witness the world pass by, constantly having to acknowledge that it's completely normal without you existing?" He asks,"That's what I had to deal with after the machine...I didn't want to watch the world disappear anymore. I couldn't take that chance,"

He collapses, but manages to stay up with one leg. I close my arms around him, he hesitates for a bit, but hugs me back.

"I promise...I'll help the monsters above ground. I'll do everything that I can to help you guys. You too, Gaster,"

I pull away from Gaster and Sans walks beside me.

"You two have a lot to talk about," I say to the two of them,"I hope you two get on better terms later,"

I walk out of the hall, having met another person along the way. Though I'm still shaken up a bit, I'm more determined than ever to do the right thing.

"I can't give up now," I say to myself,"Not when the end is so close!"

* * *

 **I hope that was a good chapter! I really enjoyed introducing W.D. Gaster and having him fight with Sans. I've actually been waiting to do this for a really long time. I hope that this chapter was enjoyable for both me and you. Also, my parents had presents under the tree, but my baby sister started opening the presents, so they had to put them in their room, to my anger. Making this chapter sort of took it off of my chest. Anyway, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this story. Until then!**


	14. Facing Reality

**I want all of you guys to pull up a chair and get comfortable. This chapter is going to be a long one. And it's not like the last time I went and said that. I just thought it was going to carry on for a while. This one though, BOY IS THIS ONE LONGER THAN THE OTHERS. This is the longest chapter in the story by far. I doubt there'll be another chapter that'll be longer than this one. It meshes two fights in one chapter so that's probably why it's bloated as heck. Anyways, don't skip through anything! Until then!**

 **stop reading this text if you don't want to have a bad time.**

* * *

I walk down a narrow hallway and see a sign.

'Throne Room' it says.

There was a cluster of leaves leading into another room, they're in the shape of a doormat. I take out my diary and write down my encounter with Gaster. Right before I pass into the next room, I notice another path that led farther down. I head in that direction and head down the steps. I step into a room and see coffins with different color SOULs on the front. My mouth drops open and I look around, horrified. There were seven coffins, all right in front of me.

"What in the...!?"

I look at the first coffin and see the name "Chara" on the front. Come to think of it, I heard the name "Chara" in Waterfall during that dream.

I walk out of this traumatizing room and head back upstairs. When I pass through the door, I realize that this throne room looks more like a garden than anything else. It's color shines in contrast with all the other gray rooms. I can see golden flowers all gathered in one area. There was a large figure watering them, the King maybe? I slowly walk up to get a better look. The monster had golden hair and two horns. They wore a long blue robe. I could hear them singing a little tune to themselves.

"Uh...hello?" I greet.

"Oh? Is someone there?" A deep, male voice asks,"Just a moment! I have almost finished watering these flowers,"

The monster turns around with a smile on his face.

"Howdy!" he says,"How can I...Oh,"

He pauses and backs away, his face in a bit of shock. It wasn't too drastic, his mouth only dropped open slightly, but he had the biggest smile on his face just a while ago. This monster is definitely King Asgore. Not only does he say "Howdy!" he also has a striking likeness to Toriel.

"...I so badly want to say,'would you like a cup of tea?'" he says,"But...You know how it is,"

This guy is immensely kind. It's kind of hard to imagine him as a murderer. He really strikes me as the "family man" kind of guy. One that's always there for them, no matter what.

"Nice day today, huh?" Asgore asks,"Birds are singing, flowers are blooming...Perfect weather for a game of catch,"

"It is pretty nice, huh?" I ask,"Is it always this quiet and peaceful?"

"Well, there's no weather in the UNDERGROUND,"he says,"Rarely do people ever wander up here. Yes, it's almost always quiet,"

Asgore turns and looks out of a window, frowning. He sighs and looks towards me.

"You know what we must do," He says,"When you are ready, come into the next room,"

He walks off and I follow him, not really sure where else to go. I walk into another room. It wasn't as nearly as colorful and bright as the last.

"How tense...Just think of it like...A visit to the dentist," Asgore says.

I'm not sure how to picture my death as a visit to the dentist. Maybe he's saying that it hurts, but works out eventually. I'd be more accepting of those words if they weren't about me dying. Also, my death probably won't solve anything. Sans DID say that humanity was going to be destroyed. Probably after a second war. And then what? Will the survivors just duke it out or be forced to rebuild the entire area from the ground up?

"Are you ready?" He asks,"If you are not, I understand. I am not ready either,"

He heads into another room. I take this small moment to write down what Asgore looks like and the small talk we had. I use my phone and realize that I have two dimensional boxes that I can move stuff from. I check the first one and find the butterscotch pie and golden flower in it. I take both of those items along with the snowman piece and they fade into my ITEMS. I take out the golden flower and put it in my hair. It stuck out towards the side of the top of my head.

I walk into the next room with Asgore. A light pulses on the walls and travels farther off to who-knows-where.

"This is the barrier," He says,"This is what keeps us all trapped underground,"

"It's...quite eye-catching," I say, trying to lighten the mood a bit, but failing to think of anything decent.

"If...If by any chance you have any unfinished business...please do what you must," he says.

"There's nothing for me to go back for," I respond,"Whenever you're ready..."

"...I see..." He says,"This is it, then...ready?"

Seven containers appear from the floor. One of them is empty. I take it that the empty one is where my soul is supposed to be. My SOUL appears from within me. It's finally happening.

'A strange light fills the room.'

'Twilight is shining through the barrier.'

'It seems my journey is finally over.'

'I'm filled with...DETERMINATION.'

"Human, it was nice to meet you,"Asgore says,"Goodbye,"

Asgore takes out a big red trident. With it, the four options 'FIGHT' 'ACT' 'ITEM' AND 'MERCY' appear. He thrusts his trident out and breaks the mercy option. I stand there and watch as the broken pieces scatter around me, terrified. I look back at him and his head is facing downward. I guess he can't look at me without feeling sadness or shame.

"Listen, I don't want to fight you," I say,"I came up here to help the monsters and I escape,"

"There's no time for that," He says,"This is it..."

I thought my words had no effect, but I saw his hands tremble for a small bit. The trident shook a small bit from it, but he calms down a bit later. He casts fire magic at me and I dodge it. These attacks reminded me of Toriel. I knew how her patterns worked so this was no problem.

"This isn't the way to fix everything," I say,"There'll only be more deaths after this!"

"Everyone will finally...be free," Asgore replies,"This is what...we've been working so hard for,"

He looks like he had to force those words out of himself. He looks pained to say it and I know for a fact that he doesn't want this battle to happen in the first place. He sent wavy lines of fireballs down in my direction. I know Toriel had a variation of this attack, but I never managed to get it down. I misstep and get burned, scorched.

I clench my side and look at Asgore. He pauses for a slight moment and hears my heavy breathing. I nearly saw the king drop his trident right there and then, but he just grabs it firmly after a second.

"I don't want to fight!" I yell,"So cut it out!"

Again, he nearly drops the trident right in front of me. I just chalked it up that talking wasn't going to solve a thing. If I'm going to get through to King Asgore, I have to find another way to end this. I guess the only option is to fight. But before that...instant noodles. A little microwave pops up and I put the noodles in a bowl and push it inside.

"Um...t-the battle..." Asgore starts.

"You mind? Wait a bit!" I snap.

Asgore gives an apologetic look.

-Six minutes later-

I'm dodging blow after blow and suffer burns all over. It hurts to stand, but I can definitely feel the strength of the burns lessening. He must be holding back. It sort of reminds me of Toriel. Although, she would outright make her attacks avoid me instead of just weakening them. This guy is nice even when he knows he has to kill me. I can respect that.

It was finally my turn to strike back. I waste no time in landing a blow on him using the dagger I found. I held back the first time because I'm not used to outwardly trying to hurt somebody. He senses my hesitation and even seems to encourage me to continue. I guess he feels that if I attack, it'll take some of the pain of doing this act off of his mind. Knowing what he's going though is painful.

"Only one of us is going to survive this!" He insists,"Don't hold back, no matter what!"

"Only if you do the same, I can tell this is hurting you," I reply.

He nods slowly, his head directed at the ground again.

"Give it your all!" He yells.

I run towards him, passing easily through an orange scythe attack, and give him a sharp cut across his right cheek. I back away just in time to avoid some fire magic. He would send clusters of it at the sides, but would shoot a small line of it down the middle. I kept to the middle. Though it hurt and burned me, I was mostly alright. He and I traded blows as the battle carried on. He sent a cluster of fireballs that covered every end of the field. I slip between them and give Asgore one final shot.

He collapses and is reduced to kneeling just to stay up. He continues to fire shots at me. I got trapped and was covered in burn marks. I pick this moment to take out the butterscotch-cinnamon pie. It was still warm, even after my entire journey. It looked just like it had been when Toriel had left it for me. I was going to start eating before I took a look at Asgore. He stares at the pie in my hand, sniffing the air a small bit.

"S-something the matter?"

"I never COULD replicate her pies," He said,"They were so unique,"

I frown and look at the pie for a bit. I wanted to save this pie for when I needed it most. Now, it seems like that time is here. But, I never would have thought that Asgore would enjoy these kind of pies. I slowly take my gaze away from it and walk up to Asgore, hold it out in front of me, offering it to him.

"Y-you..." he falters,"I had so long ago forgotten what they had tasted like...after all these years...I still can't remember it,"

He gingerly takes it from me, looking at it with a sort of nostalgic look on his face.

"I don't want this fight to continue," I say to him,"I want to help you guys escape...we can find another way,"

"...I remember the day after my son died," Asgore says,"The entire underground was devoid of hope. The future had once again been taken from us by the humans. In a fit of anger...I declared war. I said I would destroy every human that came here,"

"W-why?"

"I was rash and blinded by anger," He says.

"Asgore, I know that humans can be hasty to make decisions when it comes to seeing something they don't know or understand," I say,"But you have to remember, not all are bad. Some of us are amazing and loved by everyone!"

"I understand that. Meeting you, those words seem to be more true with every passing second," He says,"You did your best to show mercy. I had to even tell you it was alright for you to even begin fighting back. And even then, I attacked more than you did. You acknowledged that this fight was hard for the both of us,"

"Asgore, you're a great king. You put all of this effort into keeping everyone's hopes up. I can imagine that going about all of this chaos must have been extremely tough for you,"I say,"But you have to realize, violence isn't always a solution to everything,"

I take the golden flower out of my hair. Asgore holds the butterscotch-cinnamon pie in his right hand and takes the golden flower in his left. He stares at it for a bit before looking at me.

"Sure, violence is easy. It is EASY to hurt someone. It is EASY to just not care and throw them aside without giving a second thought,"I say to Asgore,"Learning to care is difficult. Whether you like it or not, caring for others isn't always easy. But if you take the time to understand and put effort into every fiber of your being, it can go a long way. I've met so many monsters that just needed to have their problems solved. They care about each other so much,"

"...Where...did you get this flower?" Asgore asks me.

"Let's just say...a friend of mine gave it to me. Think of it as...forgiveness for everything that's happened. I know you don't want to fight. So why not end it here?" I ask.

Asgore looks at me for a moment before sitting and looking down at the ground, dropping the flower and setting the pie down gently. I can see a tear drop from his face and he shakes a bit, sobbing silently. I can't tell if he's truly saddened or if he's crying tears of joy that this battle is over. If the latter is the case, then it's nice to see he's got most of the weight of his problems off of his back. I walk up to Asgore to comfort him, but he motions for me to stay where I am.

"Truthfully, I do not want power. I do not want to hurt anyone," He says,"I just wanted everyone to have hope. But...I cannot take this any longer. I just want to see my wife. I just want to see my child. Please...young one...this war has gone on long enough. You have the power...take my soul, and leave this cursed place,"

"Asgore, as much as I want to see my family again, I can't," I reply,"You expect me to choose over staying down here, or going up there? I won't! For a while, I thought my goal was simple. Go throughout the UNDERGROUND and escape to my family on the surface,"

Asgore looks at me intently, listening to my words.

"But...along the way, I've met so many different monsters. I've learned that they all love each other like family. I used to be a young girl who would do everything she could to fit in with everyone else. I wanted to be like everyone else because I was afraid of what would happen if I was deemed 'different," I explain.

'But...now I want to help everyone out here.'

'I want to pay them back for what I learned from them.'

'I learned that life is going to be full of strange and new things.'

'I learned that violence isn't always the solution.'

'I learned...that I can just be myself. I won't have to worry about being judged.'

"I even started to love being down here! The friends I've met aren't like any other _human_ I've met before. Of course, there's my family, but...some people just aren't replaceable," I finish,"So, no, Asgore, I'm not taking your soul. We're doing this some other way,"

Asgore looks at me, completely baffled. His saddened face had turned into a tearful grin.

"...After everything I have done to hurt you...you would rather stay down here and suffer, than live happily on the surface?" Asgore asks,"Human...I promise you...for as long as you remain here...My wife and I will take care of you as best we can. We can sit in the living room, telling stories...eating butterscotch pie...We could be like...like a family,"

I was about to hug Asgore before I noticed a swarm of bullets surrounding him. He looks about, horrified before being struck with them.

"ASGORE!"

He turns to dust and his SOUL is left there. One last bullet strikes it, shattering it. Flowey suddenly appears from the ground, smiling the biggest smile ever. I clench my fist tightly as I pull my face into a look of disgust and anger.

"You IDIOT," Flowey says,"You haven't learned a thing,"

I draw my dagger and charge at him, intent on ripping this guy from the ground. He just goes back into the ground and pops up somewhere else, laughing.

"In this world, it's kill or be killed," He says,"But, believe me, I understand. You're not able to comprehend it AT ALL. You weren't even supposed to exist,"

"W-what do you mean?"

"Remember how I said Frisk's relentless resetting was causing everything to go crazy?" Flowey asks,"Well, during that craziness, you were brought into being,"

"How do you know all of this?"

"Let me explain. The timelines in the world are like a quilt. They're all heading in the same direction at first, all at the same time. But then, they're crossed over by something, and that results in a different path happening. In one of these paths, you came along," he says,"Frisk, seeing you for the first time, did his best to RESET the timeline to get rid of you. I guess he realized just how much he screwed up,"

"H-he what!?"

"But, to his horror, he couldn't get rid of you. Your strive to exist overtook his efforts. The only thing he could do was erase your memory and make you start off above ground again," Flowey says,"Anyway...I want you to see something,"

A red SOUL suddenly appears. It glows and floats a little bit over the ground.

"Is that?"

"Frisk's SOUL?" he asks,"I found them, defenseless, alone, and at the CORE, looking for you. Apparently they wanted to explain what happened with you and apologize, hoping to help you fix this entire mess. Let's just say...I jumped at the opportunity to...prove my point from earlier. It's kill or be killed,"

"You're horrible!" I say,"You're a horrible, horrible freak!"

He just laughs at me. The other SOULs that Asgore had gathered with Frisk's. They swarm in a circle and surround Flowey. My vision slowly gets white before I'm blinded. When I open my eyes, I'm thrust into a black void. I have no idea where to go or what to do. I begin to take out my diary to load my save again. To my horror, I see that it's filled with the names of the kids that died down here. I read them over closely.

'Chara & Frisk' - Red Soul: Determination

'Alice' - Aqua Soul: Patience

'Owen' - Orange Soul: Bravery

'Belle' - Blue Soul: Integrity

'Percival' - Purple Soul: Perseverance

'Gene' - Green Soul: Kindness

'Yusef' - Yellow Soul: Justice

At the bottom of the list, I see a name slowly appear. My eyes widened and I drop the book.

'Anna' - Maroon Soul: Friendship

The diary slowly moves away from me and floats in the air. It slowly rips in two as Flowey's head appears from the rip. The ripped pages fall onto the ground and the words disappear like someone just spilled white-out over them.

"Howdy!" Flowey says,"It's me, FLOWEY! FLOWEY the FLOWER!"

My frightened look turns back into anger.

"I owe you a HUGE thanks," He says,"You really did a number on that old fool. Without you, I NEVER could have gotten past him. But now, with YOUR help, he's DEAD. And I'VE got the human SOULS!"

'Boy! I've been empty for so long...'

'It feels great to have a SOUL inside me again.'

'Mmmm, I can feel them wriggling...'

'Awww, you're feeling left out, aren't you?'

'Well, that's just perfect.'

'After all, power is power.'

'I'll use your SOUL to help erase this world and start a new one!'

'And don't worry, you won't have to go through this pain again.'

'Because you're not coming back.'

'Your SAVE file, it's gone.'

'But, no worries, your old friend Flowey has worked out a replacement for you!'

'I'll SAVE over your own death.'

'So you can watch me tear you to bloody pieces.'

'Over, and over, and over...'

I begin to get enough of this guy and decide to shut him up for good. I step towards him, challenging him.

'...What? Do you really think you can stop ME?" Flowey asks,"You really ARE an idiot,"

The six SOULs and Frisk's begin to appear and scatter around. My maroon-colored SOUL appears from my center. I look about as a giant black silhouette appears. Flowey's face appears on a white screen and looks normal for a slight bit. That quickly changes as it's eyes become a red with green pupils. He lets out a spine-chilling laugh as he reveals an absolutely horrific look. I don't even know where to describe it. It's literally something you'd only know the words for if you saw it yourself.

-88-

I was getting knocked around and hit from every angle. Walking started to hurt after a while because my legs were injured. I dodged attacks from flamethrowers and moved out of the way of vines. One of the thorns on the vines scraped my leg and I fall to the ground, clutching it. I get up slowly and attack him. It didn't seem to do a single thing. I was about to give up before the screen at the top started flashing. I saw an aqua colored heart appear. The girl's name...Alice, I think that was it. She was associated with patience.

I'm then thrust into a cluster of spinning knives. They looked like the toy knife I found in the RUINS a long while back. I dodge them rather easy as they switch their directions. I see an ACT button floating towards me. Pressing it, I'm finally able to get some words out of my petrified self.

"SOMEBODY HELP ME!" I yell out, unable to think of anything else to do.

I thought what I did hadn't done anything before I saw the knives starting to shake. They then turn into bandages and begin heading towards me. They phase into my SOUL and I felt my wounds being healed. It wasn't long before I was back to normal and fighting Flowey again. This time, Flowey tried killing me with bombs. I dodge them all, but take damage from the vines. Fingers come out from the sides and shoot bullets at me. I dodge all of them and see an orange soul appear. I'm sure that kid's name was Owen. He was associated with bravery. I'm then taken to another area where gloves begin to appear and spin around in circles. I remember seeing a glove like those in the box I had. Though, I'd never taken it out.

In one of the clusters of gloves, I see another ACT button. I press it and call out for help. The gloves shake and change their shape to look like a thumbs up. I run through them and watch as the gloves phase into my SOUL, healing my wounds. Back to the battle with Flowey, bullets come from two of the four eyes of this...thing. Vines start to appear. I learn to just edge to the side a bit and they'd all wind up clustering where I used to be. Flowey notices this and shoots more vines. This time, though, he lets me move around and stop before LOADing and letting the vines hit me. I stagger for a small moment and look around, completely baffled.

Unfortunately for me, my health didn't change when he would SAVE and LOAD. He would start doing it more often. He'd SAVE and LOAD when he was firing bullets, shooting vines, everything. I was about to collapse when I saw the blue SOUL on the screen. What was it again...integrity...the child's name is Belle. I was sent to another area where ballet slippers would hop up and down, keeping me trapped in very closed spaces. This would be an absolute nightmare for someone who's claustrophobic. I'm kept in a closed space because there were star-shaped bullets covering the top part of the area. So, I was forced to stay at the bottom and dodge the ballet shoes.

Come to think of it, I think I saw ballet shoes in Waterfall behind a cluster of leaves. My SOUL was also blue when I was battling Papyrus. Maybe Belle was a ballerina. It's likely, considering that I also found a dusty tutu there. I notice an ACT button among the ballet shoes and I hurriedly press it. Calling out for help again, I watch as the ballet shoes lift from the ground and the stars turn into music notes. I watch as the music notes phase right into my SOUL, my wounds disappearing again.

Back to Flowey, I notice that my hits are doing more damage than they used to. He starts to make giant bugs appear and fly in my direction. They seem to be heading towards some sort of flytrap. I dodge them and avoid the incoming bullets. A circle of bullets surrounded me and headed inwards. I take damage from them, not being able to react in time. The bullets he shot from his eyes are a lot slower now. They're much easier to dodge than last time. The purple soul appears on the screen. Percival, I believe the kid's name was. They had perseverance. I look left and right as books appear and shoot words at me. I remember seeing a torn notebook that Gerson had. My SOUL was purple when I was hopping from web to web while fighting Muffet.

The words that came eout of the books were completely negative. Hatred, murderer, horror, slaughter, terror, despair, ruin, trapped, doom, corrupt, cruelty, nightmare, and sadness. Among the words, an ACT button. I press it on sight. As I called for help, the negative words slowly turned to positive ones. Protect, relief, luck, love, dreams, create, dreamer, calm, mercy, and hope. The words went to my SOUL and my wounds were nearly gone. I wasn't quick enough to heal this time. Flowey was relentless, he would constantly SAVE and LOAD. I was unable to keep up with the constant switching and I winded up tripping over my feet. I move my neck as a vine comes down, barely missing me.

I see a green soul appear. Gene, I think the name of the kid was. He was associated with kindness. I'm taken to another area where frying pans appear. Flames would jump out of them whenever the frying pans would thrust upwards, like how a chef would if they flipped a pancake. I dodge the flames and keep my eye out for an ACT button. One eventually appears. I call for help again and watch as the flames turn into eggs. I grab every one I could and they would phase into my SOUL. I remember seeing a frying pan somewhere in Hotland. My heart was also green when I blocked the attacks from Undyne.

Flowey was starting to get a bit more predictable. But then, he started to send out these...I don't even know what...that would bounce off the walls of the area we were in. They were pretty big, but easy to dodge since I had so much room. The hits with my dagger were doing a lot more damage. Flowey sends bombs after me and starts the finger bullet attack again. After a while, the yellow SOUL finally appears. Yusef, the yellow SOUL, was associated with justice. My SOUL was yellow during the fight with Mettaton. I was given a gun to fight him with. A giant gun appears and shoots bullets at me. The two girls in the alley outside of MTT Resort had an empty gun. There were targets that showed where the bullets were going, so it was easy to dodge. It suddenly shoots out an ACT button. I press it and call for help. The bullets started shooting out four-leaf clovers.

When the gun disappears, the SOULs from before appear and begin to circle around me, healing my wounds. One of them, Frisk's red SOUL, appears and phases into my SOUL. The locket on my chest and the dagger in my hand glow a fiery red coloring.

'Flowey's DEFENSE dropped to 0!'

I smiled and thanked the SOULs for helping me. They float off to somewhere and Flowey begins attacking with his eye-bullets. They're slower than normal so they're easy to dodge. I started to attack Flowey with my dagger and smile when I notice that's it's doing an incredible amount of damage. I dodge and whittle away at Flowey's health. Flowey then speeds up his attacks. I get hit, but I don't feel much anymore. I'm not taking as much damage as I used to. I slash away at Flowey's giant form. Eventually, my efforts finally payed off. Flowey starts to shake violently.

"No...NO! This CAN'T be happening!" Flowey cries out,"You...YOU..."

FILE 3 LOADED

"You IDIOT," Flowey laughs.

A beam comes from Flowey and pierces my SOUL. I collapse and clench my chest in pain. The light within the locket and dagger disappear in an instant. That wasn't the end. Flowey continuously loaded the file and would repeat that same attack. My health didn't heal when he did it, so I had to endure even more pain each time. A circle surrounds my crippled body. Flowey laughs maniacally at my wounds.

"Did you REALLY think you could defeat ME!?" He asks,"I am the GOD of this world. And you? You're HOPELESS. Hopeless and alone. Golly, that's right! Your WORTHLESS friends can't save you now,"

I was in pain, but managed to glare at him from my spot on the ground.

"Call for help. I dare you. Cry into the darkness!" He says,"Mommy! Daddy! Somebody help! See what good it does you!"

An ACT button appears and I press it.

"IF ANYBODY IS THERE! PLEASE!" I yell,"Please...!"

Nothing...

"But nobody came. Boy, what a shame!" he says,"Nobody else...is gonna get to see you DIE!"

The bullets slowly close in on me. But then, for a split second, the locket glows one last time and causes all of the bullets to heal me back to full health. I stand up and give Flowey a look of determination.

"What? How'd you...?" Flowey falters,"Well, I'll just.."

LOAD FAILED

I smirk at Flowey's apparent distress.

"Wh...where are my powers!?" He asks.

"Sorry, Flowey, but..." I start.

The six SOULs appear again. Frisk's SOUL appears from mine and joins the rest of them.

"The souls...?" he asks,"What are they doing?"

"YOU'RE the one that's hopeless," I finish.

They instantly start to circle him. The area becomes a giant flash of color and chaos. The SOULs speed up, going faster and faster.

"NO! NO! YOU CAN'T DO THAT!" He yells,"YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO OBEY ME! STOP! STOP IT! STOOOOPPPP!"

But they didn't, they continued. They kept going round and round until...it was all white. I close my eyes to avoid being blinded. When I finally open them, Flowey is leaning like a wilted flower. The two options, FIGHT and MERCY appear. I press MERCY without a second thought.

"What are you doing? Do you really think I've learned anything from this?" He asks,"No,"

I press MERCY a second time.

"Sparing me won't change anything," He says,"Killing me is the only way to end this,"

MERCY again...

"If you let me live, I'll come back,"He warns.

MERCY

"I'll kill you,"He threats.

MERCY

"I'll kill everyone,"

MERCY

"I'll kill everyone you love,"

I press MERCY again and Flowey just looks at me, baffled by what he's seeing. I keep pressing MERCY and Flowey starts to get aggravated with me.

"...why?"

MERCY

"...Why are you being...so nice to me?"

MERCY

"I can't understand,"

MERCY

"I can't understand!"

MERCY for one last time.

"I just can't understand..."

Flowey ran away.

I walk out of this dark place to who knows where. I'm met with another dark void. I don't know where to go, what to do. There isn't anywhere left for me to return to.

-88-

I've been here for quite some time now. I've thunk about my entire adventure and the people I've met. It took a while, but I got a call from my phone.

"heya," I hear,"is anyone there...?"

It looks like Sans is speaking. I just stare at the phone in silence.

"well...just calling to say...you made a snowman really happy," he says.

I smile at those words. I'd almost forgotten the snowman wanted me to help him.

"guess i should say something else, too," Sans says.

'so...it's been a while. the queen returned, and is now ruling over the underground.'

'she's instated a new policy...all the humans who fall here will be treated not as enemies...but as friends.'

'it's probably for the best, anyway.'

'the human souls the king gathered...seem to have disappeared.'

'so, uh, that plan ain't happening any time soon.'

'but even though people are heartbroken over the king...and things are looking grim for our freedom...the queen's trying her best not to let us give up hope.'

'so, uh, hey. if we're not giving up down here...don't give up wherever you are, ok?'

'who knows how long it will take...but we will get out of here.'

"SANS!" I hear a loud voice say,"WHO ARE YOU TALKING TO?"

"oh, nobody," Sans replies.

"WHAT!? NOBODY!?" Papyrus says,"CAN I TALK TO THEM TOO?"

My god, Papyrus.

"here, knock yourself out," Sans insists.

"WAIT A SECOND...I RECOGNIZE THIS NUMBER!" Papyrus says,"ATTENTION, HUMAN! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS...AM NOW CAPTAIN OF THE ROYAL GUARD!"

'Nice job, Paps!' I think to myself.

"IT'S EVERYTHING I'VE EVER DREAMED OF...EXCEPT, INSTEAD OF FIGHTING, WE JUST WATER FLOWERS," Papyrus explains,"SO THAT'S EVER-SO-SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT,"

That's a bit of and odd thing to have a guard do. But it IS Toriel after all. She's a gentle creature.

"AND, WE'RE HELPING DR. ALPHYS WITH HER RESEARCH!" Papyrus exclaims,"SHE'S GONNA FIND A WAY TO GET US OUT OF HERE. UNDYNE IS HELPING HER TOO! THOUGH, TO BE HONEST, HER METHOD OF HELPING...IT SEEMS KIND OF...EXPLOSION-INDUCING. BUT I THINK ALPHYS LIKES HAVING HER AROUND...UH OH"

Well, that's Undyne, for you. Always taking the hard road and doing things in her own unique way.

"Hey! What are you up to, punk!?" I hear a female voice say.

That must be Undyne. I hear a small scraping sound over the phone.

"PLEASE DON'T NOOGIE THE PHONE," Papyrus says.

"Hey! Who's in charge here!?" Undyne asks.

"ME," Papyrus says.

"Oh...yeah, that's right!" Undyne says,"I quit my job as leader of the Royal Guard,"

What?

"Actually, since we won't be fighting anymore...the Royal Guard totally disbanded,"Undyne explains,"There's, uh, only one member now,"

WHAT!?

"BUT HE'S EXTREMELY GOOD!" Papyrus boasts.

"Yeah! He is! C'mere!" Undyne says.

"PLEASE DON'T NOOGIE THE SKELETON," says Papyrus.

"Anyways, now I'm working as Alphys' lab assistant," Undyne says,"We're gonna find a way out of this dump once and for all!"

Hopefully that works out...

"Oh, yeah, and I'm a gym teacher at the queen's new school," She says,"Did you know I can bench-press seven children!? Awesome, right?"

I'm not going to even ask why or how she knows that.

"...Hey, I'm sorry about what happened with ASGORE," Undyne says,"You were just doing what you had to. It's not your fault he...Ah, darn it, I miss the big guy,"

I do too...he was a nice King.

"Come on, Undyne! Snap out of it!" She says,"Uh, I guess I'll tell you how Alphys is doing,"

I almost forgot about Alphys.

"Well, she's the same as ever. Maybe a little more reclusive than normal,"Undyne says,"Seems like something's really bothering her...But, she can get through it! I'm there supporting her! That's what friends are for, right?"

Yeah, THAT'S what friends are for. They're NOT for promising to pummel someone into the ground if they hurt anyone.

"Hey, wherever you are...I hope it's better than here," She says,"It took a lot of sacrifice for you to get there. So, wherever you are...you have to try to be happy, okay!? For our sakes! We'll feel better knowing our trouble was worth it,"

Sad to say, this place isn't better than where I used to be. I actually miss the UNDERGROUND more than ever now.

"We're all with you! Everyone is! Even the queen!" Undyne says,"HEYYY! WAIT a second! TORIEL! TORIEL! Do you wanna...? Heh, she says she's busy,"

"BUT IF SHE KNEW WHO WE WERE TALKING TO..." Papyrus said.

"we wouldn't get the phone back for at least a few hours," Sans finishes.

"WE HAVE THE MERCY TO SPARE YOU FROM HER!" Papyrus says.

"But call back any time, ok?!" Undyne insists,"She'd love to talk!"

"oh, whoops,"Sans says,"this thing's almost outta batteries,"

"so, hate to cut this short, but...be seeing you, ok, Anna?" says Sans.

"BYE BYE FOR NOW!" Papyrus says.

"See ya, punk!" Undyne says.

The phone cuts off and I'm left in this dark void again.

-88-

I roll around and try to find something to do. Nothing comes up in my mind and I'm left sitting here, alone with my thoughts. The only things I can think of are the friends I've made in the UNDERGROUND. I thought about myself. I'm not even supposed to exist. All those family memories...Then, there's my family. The family I've put myself through pain to get to. Dad and Charles.

"I'll miss you guys," I say.

At that moment Flowey appears in front of me.

"Why...?" He asks,"Why did you let me go?"

I stare at him in silence, not caring that he'll probably try and kill me.

"Don't you realize that being nice...just makes you get hurt?" He asks,"Look at yourself. You made all these great friends...But now, you'll probably never see them again,"

He's right about that. I mull over his words for a small bit. All I can do is frown.

"Not to mention how much they've been set back by you," Flowey says,"Hurts, doesn't it? So, I don't get it. If you really did everything the right way, why did things still end up like this? Is life really that unfair?"

'Jeez! He's right! I've gotta get out of here!' I realize.

I stand up and look around frantically, trying to find a way to escape. There is none.

"Hey, calm down," He says,"What if I told you...I knew some way to get you a better ending?"

I stop looking around and stare at him, surprised.

"You'll have to load your SAVE file, and, well, in the meantime, why don't you go see Dr. Alphys?" He suggests,"It seems like you could have been better friends,"

That's right! I didn't patch things up with Alphys yet. Maybe that's what's bothering her so much. Her lying to me caused her to become even more reclusive.

"Who knows...maybe she's got the key to your happiness...?" He suggests again,"See you soon,"

And with that, he disappears. I look around this endless dark void for any sign of my diary. Then, right as I'm about to give up, there it is! It was alone and ripped in half, but hopefully, it still worked. I realize that the pages are back to normal. Looking for where I had the final talk with ASGORE, I hold my finger to that page and try to remember his words. As the image becomes clear in my mind, I open my eyes.

Here I am, again.

* * *

 **Well, it took me quite some time to finish this chapter. Usually all of them take a few hours, but this was the longest I've ever done so far! I'm relieved that I managed to finish this because that took some serious effort! Anyways, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this chapter! Until then!**


	15. Be Honest

**I loved making this chapter SO MUCH. There were so many humorous things I decided to put in. This scene was already funny in the game 'Undertale' so I decided, why not make it even MORE funny? There can't possibly be anything wrong with that. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Until then!**

 **P-please...stop reading this text?**

* * *

I follow Asgore into the next room. I see the barrier once more and I look around the room.

"This is the barrier,"Asgore says,"This is what keeps us all trapped underground,"

"It's...quite eye-catching," I say, like last time.

"If...If by any chance you have any unfinished business...please do what you must," he says.

"Actually, I do have one thing on my mind," I reply.

"I see...anything you want to do is important enough,"he says,"Even something as small as reading a book, or taking a walk...Please take your time,"

I listen to the kind words of this King. I still don't know how I worked up the nerve to attack him in the first place. Well, he DID destroy my MERCY button...

I turn around and head outside of the room, taking the time to write down my battle with Flowey. There is no way I'm ever going to let that situation happen ever again. As I walk through the CORE, I see a kid looking about the area. They has brown hair and a striped shirt...Frisk?

"Frisk...is that you?" I ask.

The kid turns around and looks at me. It's definitely Frisk. I'd know those closed eyes anywhere. They give a shocked look and quickly run up to me, acting apologetic.

"It's alright Frisk, I'm actually quite happy with how things turned out,"I say,"I SHOULD be thanking you. So...thank you Frisk...for...helping me experience this world,"

Their mouth drops open a small bit, but they smile afterwards. They start moving their hands about in a strange way. I realize that they're using sign language to speak to me.

'Where are you going?' they ask.

''I'm actually going to see Alphys for one last time," I answer,"Wanna come?"

'Sure!' they answer.

Me and Frisk head out of the CORE and my phone starts ringing. Frisk jumps a small bit and looks at me. Picking up the phone, I answer it.

"Hello?"

"Hey...!" I hear,"Uh, this is Undyne..."

Undyne? What could she want at a time like this? I hear Papyrus speaking in the background, apparently trying to talk to me. I try my best to listen really closely, but Undyne drowns out his voice.

"HUMAN! You have to deliver something for me!" She says,"Uh, please? I'm at Snowdin in front of Papyrus's, See ya, punk!"

'That was Undyne, wasn't it?' Frisk asks.

"Yeah," I answer,"How'd you tell?"

'See ya, punk!' They sign.

I laugh at Frisk's response and we begin to head to Snowdin. Frisk pulls me another way when we're in Hotland. I decide to listen to them and they bring me to a boat. There was a hooded person standing there, offering a ride. I was a bit hesitant because the look of the figure unnerved me a small bit, but Frisk insisted it was alright. I direct the monster to Snowdin and we're soon on our way. It was MUCH quicker than taking the entire walk through Waterfall again.

When we get back to Snowdin, I shiver from the cold. Frisk just looks about the village, stoically. I look at Frisk for a bit and wonder how he isn't affected by the cold at all. I saw a slight shudder and I realized he was just good at hiding his emotions. I walk up until I see Undyne and Papyrus standing outside of a house. They look in my direction and back up a bit, surprised to see who was with me.

"Hi guys!" I greet.

"Who's your friend?" Undyne asks.

"Their name is Frisk. I met them in the RUINS and saw them wandering around the CORE a while ago,"

"I only heard of one human still around here...and that was you," Undyne affirms.

"HE LOOKS FAMILIAR!" Papyrus says.

Frisk quickly shakes their head 'no', not wanting to draw any sort of unwanted attention.

"Um, so, I have a favor to ask you," Undyne says,"Uuuuh, I...I need you to deliver this letter. To Dr. Alphys,"

Undyne produces a letter and hands it to me. I take it in my hands and look it over for a bit.

"What's in-"

"DON'T OPEN IT!" Undyne snaps,"I'LL BEAT THE CRAP OUTTA YOU!"

I flinch and nod my head in an understanding manner. Undyne was freakishly scary whenever she felt like being that way. I felt my skin crawl as I recall the first time I saw her. She nearly caught me that time, in the grass.

"I-it's kind of personal, but we're friends...so...I'll tell you why I don't want to deliver it myself..." She says,"Hotland SUUUUCKS! I don't wanna have to go over there!"

Son of a goat, Undyne.

"Again, if you read it...I'll KILL you,"Undyne says,"Thanks so much! You're the best!"

Uh-huh. Whatever you say, Ms. Anger Management.

Frisk and I head off back towards the boat. We hop onto the boat and direct the monster to Hotland. We're carried back over to the Hotland really quickly. It was almost amazing how this monster knew so many shortcuts throughout the water routes. When we reach our destination, I take out my diary and write down how I received Undyne's letter. Walking up to the lab door, I resist the urge to open the letter and read what Undyne wrote. I slide the letter under the door and give it a knock.

Inside the lab, I can hear the shuffling of feet across the floor.

"O-oh n-no, is that another letter...?" I hear,"I don't want to open it...C-can't I just slide it back out...?"

Alphys I swear to-

"N...no...I can't keep doing this,"She says,"I'll read this one,"

THANK YOU!

"Um...I-it's shut k-kind of strongly, isn't it?"

Frisk laughs a tiny bit. I wonder why before I listen more closely. I can hear the sound of a laser being used. Undyne...always making it hard for everyone else... The door slowly opens and I'm face to face with Alphys.

"Hey, if this is a joke, it's..."

She looks up and gives a shocked expression. I just raise one of my eyebrows at her, confused.

"Oh my God!" She says,"Did YOU write this letter?"

"H-hey, wait a second. You've got the wrong id-"

"It wasn't signed, so, I had no idea who could have..."

SON OF A GOAT, UNDYNE!

"Wait...who're they?" Alphys says.

She must mean Frisk, better make this convincing.

"He's a friend of mine! He fell down here the same time as me. He hasn't been outside of the RUINS all that much, though,"

Alphys nods and returns to the letter.

"I h-had no idea you, um, wrote that way!" she says,"It's surprising, too...After all the gross stuff I did. I don't really deserve to be forgiven,"

Well, I'm willing to make amends. I just hope she understands that she got the wrong idea about all of this. I'm just a simple messenger. I don't deserve nor want the attention.

"You know what, okay! I'll do it!" Alphys says,"It's the least I can do to make it up to you!"

Wait, do what? ALPHYS, PLEASE NO!

"Y-yeah! **Let's go on a date!** " She says.

SON OF A GOAT, ALPHYS!

-88-

DATING START.

Waiting...

DATING START..

Waiting some more...

DATING START...?

Did Alphys take a rain check or...?

"Uhhh, sorry!" Alphys says,"I'm still getting dressed!"

Alphys strolls on in front of me dressed in a red dress with white polka dots. She actually looks pretty well dressed for the occasion! I'm sure Undyne would be happy to be here right now. I decide to stay with her for a bit and then call Undyne later and get them to meet and chat it up.

"H-how do I look?"

"It's actually not that bad!" I reply,"It suits you!"

"T-thanks!" She answers,"My friend helped me pick out this dress. She's got a great sense of...Um, anyway! Let's do this thing!

DATING START.

"H-h-hey, w-w-wait!" Alphys says,"Actually, we still can't start the date yet!"

DATING...STOP?

"Umm, I've gotta give you items to raise your affection statistic, first!" she says,"That'll increase the chance of a successful outcome to the date!"

Are we playing a video game now or something? What sta-

A board comes up with the word "AFFECTION" at the top. It slowly fades away afterwards.

Guys, I'm done with this place. I look towards Frisk for some help, but they just give a thumbs up. They direct me to go on with their hand. I can hear them snickering to themselves.

"I hate you so much right now," I whisper.

They just snicker louder.

"Anyway, d-don't worry! I'm prepared!" Alphys says,"I-I've been stockpiling gifts in anticipation for a date like this!"

Now it just depends on what Alphys went and brought for the date. If she's been stockpiling, I'd assume she has a wide array of items to give depending on who she's dating.

"F-first, I've got...some metal armor polish!" She says.

I stare at it for a bit, confused. Alphys goes to put it away.

"Um, maybe you can't use that..." She says.

"Hey, wait up a second," I say,"Does that work with ALL metal?"

"I-I think so, yeah!" Alphys responds.

"Dad occasionally makes weapons. He loves swords and shields! I think steel is made out of some metallic elements," I say,"That could help him! Could I have that?"

"S-sure!" she says, handing it to me,"And, yes, steel is an alloy made mostly of metallic elements. But you really wouldn't classify steel as a metal or a nonmetal,"

"Thanks!"

"Second, I also brought some waterproof cream for your scales," She says,"Your, uh...scales..."

"Er...Alphys?" I say,"Perhaps that would be best for Undyne!"

"Y-you're right!" She says,"Undyne would enjoy this!"

I'm laughing in my head, but I'm doing my best to make this small moment enjoyable. It's no surprise that Alphys is easily flustered by things like this. I'm going to try my hardest to make this work out, even if she is screwing up.

"Well...how about this magical spear repair kit, that I..."

At this point I'm trying to keep my smiling face from getting even bigger. It was kind of funny to watch Alphys' little slip-ups. She makes mistakes easily, it's part of her charm. It's what makes her...herself!

"Hey, let's forget about the items!" she says,"Let's just start the date!"

DATING! START!

"Yeah! Let's, uh, date!" She says.

A few seconds later, Alphys starts looking a bit bothered by something. She's thinking quite a bit to herself, and her face is slowly getting more worried with each passing moment.

"Uh...do you...like...anime?" She asks.

I try to hide my worried look. I've actually hardly watched any anime before in my entire life. I really have no opinion on it whatsoever. Frisk sees this, however, and does more sign language.

'LIE LIKE A DOG!' they say.

"Y-yeah! I've actually been watching anime for quite a while now!" I lie,"It's amazing!"

"H-hey! I think so too!"

We sat there for another few moments, staring awkwardly at everything. It was getting really uncomfortable for the both of us. Frisk, being my savior, helps out.

'Go somewhere!'

"Hey Alphys, we should go somewhere,"

"Y-yeah! Let's go somewhere!" She says,"But where's a good place to go on a date...?"

We begin to think for a small bit before Alphys finally gets a brainstorm.

"I've got it!" She says,"Let's go to the garbage dump!"

I try my best not to stare weirdly at her for saying something like that. I tell myself mentally 'she's just trying to make this work out for the both of us.' I repeat those words to myself slowly and I manage to calm myself down. Don't release the inner beast just yet, Anna.

I follow Alphys to the garbage dump. It doesn't look all that different from last time I saw it. It's still very...trashy like it's always been.

"Here we are!" Alphys says,"This is where Undyne and I come all the time...We find all sorts of great stuff here,"

"Have you two found anything recently?" I ask.

"Nothing really spectacular, but there was this one time we found this box full of anime CDs!" She explains.

"Sounds like fun!" I exclaim.

"Yeah,"Alphys says,"It was,"

Alphys was going to continue speaking before she notices someone a distance away from us. It looked like Undyne! And...she was dressed up as well!

"Oh no. That's her over there,"Alphys says,"I c-can't let her see me on a date with you!"

"W-why not?" I ask, curiously.

"Why? Because, uh...Well...Oh no! Here she comes!"

Alphys hides behind a garbage can in fear. Undyne walks over, dressed in a black jacket and pants. Her hair was styled into a sort of ponytail at the back while her hair flopped over her left eye at the front. It was actually a nice get-up she had chosen. I need to start considering my fashion choices. I look at my skirt for a small bit, smiling. White and blue were my favorite colors of all time. I love the way that they collide and form something amazing. But...back to Undyne.

"Hey! There you are!" Undyne says,"I, uh, realized, if you ever deliver that thing...It might be a bad idea. So I'm gonna do it! Give it to me!"

I look towards Frisk for clues on what to do. They slowly sign out words.

'Tell. The. Truth,' they say.

"I, uh, actually...don't have the letter, with me, here," I say, shyly.

"Huh!? You don't have it!?" Undyne says,"Have you at least seen her!?"

"Well actually, yeah! She was around here a while ago. Maybe you should check...over there!"

I point farther into the garbage dump. I have no idea where I'm pointing, I just want Undyne outta here as soon as possible. Undyne heads off in that direction and Alphys comes out from behind the trashcan. I stare at her for a bit, tapping my feet.

"W...well, I guess it's obvious, huh?" she says,"I...uh...I really like her,"

You're not that vague Alphys. You're like an open book. A transparent, open book. I could graze the pages and be able to summarize up what's going on in it.

"Yeah, I can see that," I say,"Is she someone special to you?"

"Are you kidding?" Alphys asks,"I don't know where to begin! I really like Undyne, but, well, she's way out of my league. She's confident, strong, brave, and I'm just a coward, a fraud. All I've ever done is hurt people,"

And now it is time for me to release the 'Powerful Message Speech Beast'. I look towards Frisk for confirmation.

'Go for it,' they say.

I take a deep breath, look at Alphys, and speak to her.

"Alphys, I've been down here for quite some time now, and I've learned tons of things from everybody," I begin,"One of them is that, no matter who you are, you aren't perfect. It's completely natural to make mistakes once in a while. It's a part of who you are!"

Alphys looks at me for a bit, smiling slightly.

"I mean, look at me! I can't go a single moment without tripping over myself or something else! I don't let that stop me, though! I won't let it no matter how many times Shony is going to write it into this story!"

"But wait, isn't all that tripping going to go wrong sooner or later?" She asks.

"Nope, Shony makes sure I have plot armor. It's super convenient. So, no matter how many times I trip, nothing extremely horrible will happen," I explain,"Unfortunately...that's the only thing he's given me plot armor for...So...I might die from something else! Who knows?"

"Huh, well...don't we have a chapter to get back to?"

"Oh, right,"

-88-

Me and Alphys had our little discussion about what was going on between her and Undyne. Frisk was supervising and keeping a sharp eye out for any signs of danger or fish-women.

"You've gotta tell her the truth, Alphys,"

"The truth?" Alphys asks,"But if I tell her that, she'll hate me. Isn't it better this way? To live a lie where both people are happy...or a truth where neither of us are. They say 'be yourself', but I don't really like who 'myself' is. I'd rather just be whatever makes people like me..."

She really wants me to bring out the PMSB again doesn't she? If she wants to, then I guess I'll have to comply...Wait...not yet. Hold on a bit more. Save it. Build up to it, Anna. It'll have more impact that way. Gotta make this look good for the many people viewing this chapter.

"...No, you're right. Every day I'm scared...Scared what will happen if people learn the truth on their own. They'll all get hurt because of me. But how can I tell UNDYNE the tr...truth?"

I look towards Frisk for any options. My wingman...wingwomen? What even is Frisk? Anyways...they think to themselves before a lightbulb goes off.

'Roleplay!' They suggest.

"How about we roleplay it, Alphys? I'll be Undyne!" I offer.

"O-okay! That actually sounds kind of fun!" Alphys says,"Ahem...H-hi Undyne. H-how are you doing today?"

"I'm fine, thanks for asking, Alphys," I answer.

"Glad to hear it!" She says,"Uhhh, so I'd like to, um, talk to you about something,"

"What is it, Alphys? Something bothering you?" I ask.

"Umm, you see...I...I...I...I h-haven't been exactly truthful w-w-with you..." Alphys says,"Y...you see, I...I..."

I was waiting for Alphys to give me her response, but then she does a complete 180 on me and she's SUPER confident now. It was such a dramatic change I back away a small bit, tripping over broken pieces of boards and falling. I quickly scramble to get back up.

"Oh, forget it! Undyne! I...I want to tell you how I feel!" Alphys says,"Y-you're so brave, a-and s-strong...A-and nice...Y-you always listen t-to me when I talk about n-n-nerdy stuff...Y-you always d-d-do your best to m-make me f-f-feel special...L-like t-telling me that y-you'll b-beat up anyone that g-gets in my way,"

I give Alphys a strange look. Undyne promised me that she'd beat me up if I hurt Asgore. Come to think of it...she doesn't owe me that anymore, now. I'm back before that happens...HOME FREE!

"UNDYNE! I CAN'T TAKE THIS ANY LONGER! I'M MADLY IN LOVE WITH YOU! HOLD ME, UNDYNE! HOLD ME!" Alphys yells.

I'm about ready to jet outta here. Frisk seems ready to follow me wherever the heck I'm going. To be honest, I have no clue, but right now, I'm not too concerned. I didn't have to leave because Undyne shows up, overhearing what Alphys said.

"WHAT did you just say?" She asks.

"U...Undyne! I...was...just..."

"Hey, woah, wait a second!" Undyne interrupts,"Your outfit's really cute! What's the occasion? Wait a second...are you two...on a date?"

Me and Alphys hurriedly try to explain what was going on concerning me being here with her. Undyne just looks back and forth between us, confused at what we're trying to say to her. Eventually...Alphys confessed her lies and tried to make it up to Undyne.

"I told you that seaweed was like...scientifically important...Really, I just...I just use it to make ice cream!" Alphys says,"And those human history books I keep reading? Those are just dorky comic books! And the history movies...those...Those are just, uh, anime! They aren't real! And that time I told you I was busy with work on the phone...I...I was just eating frozen yogurt in my pajamas. I...I just wanted to impress you! That I wasn't some...nerdy loser,"

"Alphys," Undyne says.

"Undyne, I...I really think you're neat, OK..." Alphys says.

"Alphys...Shhhhhh,"

Undyne then picks up Alphys and throws her through a basketball hoop and into a trashcan. I stand there and watch this unfold, my mouth open slightly in surprise.

"Alphys! I...think you're neat, too, I guess. But you've gotta realize. Most of what you said really doesn't matter to me. I don't care if you're watching kid cartoons or reading history books. To me, ALL of that stuff is just NERDY CRAP!"

Hey! History books are not nerdy crap! Charles would be ALL OVER THIS right now.

"What I like about you is that you're PASSIONATE! You're ANALYTICAL! It doesn't matter what it is! YOU CARE ABOUT IT! 100-PERCENT! AT MAXIMUM POWER!"

Undyne sure gets you pumped up when she feels like it. It's a gift and a curse, really.

"...so, you don't have to lie to me. I don't want you to have to lie to anyone anymore. Alphys...I want to help you become happy with who you are!" Undyne says,"And I know just the training you need to do that!"

Somehow, Alphys manages to get her tail and feet through the trashcan. The lid of the trashcan tips up a bit to reveal a pair of eyes.

"Undyne..you...Y-you're gonna train me...?" Alphys swoons.

"Pffft, what? Me?" Undyne scoffs.

Papyrus suddenly appears with a strange outfit. It has his red cape, but the name 'Jogboy' is on the front of it. He's wearing a headband and has hearts on the parts of the clothing that cover his shoulders.

"Nah, I'm gonna get Papyrus to do it," Undyne says.

"GET THOSE BONES SHAKIN!" Papyrus says,"IT'S TIME TO JOG 100 LAPS, HOOTING ABOUT HOW GREAT WE ARE!"

"Ready? I'm about to start the timer!" Undyne says.

"U-Undyne..."Alphys starts,"I'll do my best...!"

Alphys and Papyrus walk off later to who knows where. Me and Frisk are about to leave with a job-well-done. But, moments later, I hear Undyne.

"OH MY GOD! She was kidding, right!? Those cartoons...those comics," Undyne says,"Those are still REAL, right!? ANIME'S REAL, RIGHT?!"

She's giving me a rather crazy look. I suddenly feel uncomfortable about this decision. I look to where Frisk is, but I turn back and see them running for the exit. I look at Undyne for one last time.

"Of COURSE anime is real, Undyne!" I lie,"Why wouldn't it be?"

Undyne laughs crazily out loud. I back away from her a slight bit.

"I KNEW IT!" She says,"GIGANTIC SWORDS! MAGICAL PRINCESSES! HERE I COME!"

She instantly composes herself and speaks.

"Uhh, thanks for taking care of Alphys," She says,"I didn't get to say what I wanted to, but...things seem like they're going to get better for her,"

I stand there, slightly shaken, but more calm now. Alphys seems a lot more comfortable now that she, unintentionally, revealed her true emotions to Undyne. It's going great so far!

"Well, I gotta go catch up with them!" Undyne says,"Later!"

She walks off. As soon as she's out of site, I think about her question earlier. I hear Undyne coming back one last time.

"JUST TO BE SURE...anime IS real...RIGHT!?"

I waste no time in thinking of an answer and I run off to where Frisk is. I swear today just keeps getting stranger by the second.

* * *

 **I really enjoyed making this chapter. There were times when I would laugh to myself when I thought of putting something in. Hopefully this is a great addition to the story as a whole. I'd hate to put in anything lackluster for you guys. It's been great for me so far. Only 10 days to go until Christmas! I'll finally be getting that thing I've wanted for so long! Anyway, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this chapter! Until then!**


	16. True Lab

**GUYS! At this rate I may start the Aboveground sequel to this story before Christmas even gets here. Maybe even before the next week starts! It's not too far off at all! I'm so surprised that a year is already over...I was having so much fun making this! Not that I'm stopping anytime soon, but you guys get the picture, right? Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

 **HEY, PUNK, THE AUTHOR'S NOTE IS OVER! STOP READING THIS TEXT!**

* * *

Me and Frisk decide to head back to Alphys' laboratory and see how things are going on with her. There wasn't much to do besides see how she was holding up. I begin to wonder how Asgore is doing while I'm trying to patch things up with Alphys. I hear Frisk clear their throat as we walk. Turning to them, they sign.

'Have you ever seen what's inside Alphys' lab?'

"Of course!" I respond,"I visited here when I first came to Hotland,"

Frisk shakes their head at my answer. They must not mean what I'm talking about. I don't know exactly WHAT they're trying to get at. Alphys' lab is pretty small from what I've seen. I was expecting it to be one of those things where it's much bigger on the inside. After a while of walking, we finally made it. Stepping inside, the place looks empty. Alphys isn't anywhere to be found. I'd assume she was still jogging with Papyrus, but then Frisk picked up a note and showed it to me. I had to squint to see exactly what was wrote because the handwriting was on the poor side. I managed to see it, however.

'Hey. Thanks for your help back there. You guys...your support really means a lot to me. But...as difficult as it is to say this...you guys alone can't magically make my own problems go away. I want to be a better person. I don't want to be afraid anymore. And for that to happen, I have to be able to face my own mistakes. I'm going to start doing that now. I want to be clear. This isn't anyone else's problem but mine. But if you don't ever hear from me again...if you want to know "the truth"...enter the door to the north of this note. You all at least deserve to know what I did.'

That's all she wrote. I have absolutely know idea what in the world Alphys did, but she seems to be torn about it. It must've been something drastic if it's able to affect her like THIS. She said it was in the door to the north...the bathroom? That's where she went when I was here LAST time. Frisk and I head towards it, looking around inside. It's not a bathroom, but an elevator. It only goes down, so I press the button. Frisk gathers in a corner, bracing themselves. Me, knowing that Frisk has done this before, tries my best to prepare for what's going on. Too bad for me, I'm not ready for the sudden shaking of this giant box.

WARNING! WARNING! ELEVATOR LOSING POWER! EM TETHER STABILITY LOST! ALTITUDE DROPPING!

We hit the bottom, albeit roughly, and head out of the elevator as the door opens. As we step outside, I look around in surprise. This part of Alphys' lab was very...dark! The walls looked grayish, probably because of the lighting, which there was hardly any. As we walked through the hallways, I noticed little signs on the wall. Wanting to know where the heck Frisk and I were, I read them.

ENTRY NUMBER 1 - This is it...Time to do what the King has asked me to do. I will create the power to free us all. I will unleash the power of the SOUL.

From what I understand already, SOULs were the base of your entire being. That goes for both humans and monsters. Both species rely on a SOUL. So apparently, Alphys was asked by King Asgore to unleash the power of those SOULs. How, I have no idea. Onto the next sign...

ENTRY NUMBER 2 - The barrier is locked by SOUL power...Unfortunately, this power cannot be recreated artificially. SOUL power can only be derived from what was once living. So, to create more, we will have to use what we have now...The SOULs of monsters.

Because they don't have any human SOULs, and SOUL power can't be recreated artificially...Alphys has to use the SOULs of monsters. What I understand is that monster SOULs and human SOULs are vastly different. It's likely that something will go wrong if they're experimented on without examining BOTH types of SOULs first.

ENTRY NUMBER 3 - But extracting a SOUL from a living monster would require incredible power...Besides being impractical, doing so would instantly destroy the SOUL's host. And, unlike the persistent SOULs of humans...The SOULs of most monsters disappear immediately upon death. If only I could make a monster's SOUL last...

Like I expected, human SOULs aren't like monster SOULs. They still stick around after the death of the host, unlike monster SOULs, which (mostly) don't. So, Alphys wants to preserve the SOUL of a monster after the monster dies. This sounds like a new subject for her, it likely is. I haven't ever seen somebody try to preserve a SOUL before.

ENTRY NUMBER 5 - I've done it. Using the blueprints, I've extracted it from the human SOULs. I believe this is what gives their SOULs the strength to persist after death. The will to keep living...the resolve to change fate. Let's call this power..."Determination."

I'd never known that's how spirits are able to exist in our world. Although, looking at it this way, it sure makes sense. If they have the will to change their fate before that time comes, they stick around after death, changing their fate. They have the "determination" to keep living. Frisk looks around the lab, eyeing ever corner for anything suspicious. Knowing them, I make sure to watch my back if they spot anything. We reach what looks like the main part of the underground lab. I open my diary and look to see the ripped part of it slowly coming back together. In seconds, it looks like Flowey had done absolutely nothing to it. It was usable even when ripped, but this just makes it more convenient. I write down the entries I've read so far in this strange place. Also...the human SOULs that were used...the kids died...knowing that is pretty unnerving.

I hear Frisk clear their throat again. I look towards them and see that they're holding up some sort of paper. I try my best to read it, but I unfortunately can't make out even the words that ARE clear on the page. The handwriting is just ungodly. Frisk, luckily, manages to tell me what it says.

'I can only read a few of the words, but it says...elevator...lost power...enter the center door,' they say.

We both look towards the door that was mentioned, but it doesn't open, to our frustration. The sign on the wall says "POWER ROOM". Since the center door and the door off to the right doesn't work, we head west. I read another entry that's on the wall.

ENTRY NUMBER 6 - ASGORE asked everyone outside the city for monsters that had "fallen down". Their bodies came in today. They're still comatose...and soon, they'll all turn into dust. But what happens if I inject "determination" into them. If their SOULs persist after they perish, then...freedom might be closer than we all thought.

"Fallen down"...I'm not even going to explain why that unnerves me to death. So Alphys was given dying people to experiment on...what kind of place IS this? Okay, we're leaving ASAP. I'm officially done with this area. SOMEBODY LET ME OUT! Frisk notices my discomfort and motions for me to calm down. I just look about the area, occasionally stopping to examine some things.

ENTRY NUMBER 9 - things aren't going well. none of the bodies have turned into dust, so I can't get the SOULs. i told the families that i would give them the dust back for the funerals. people are starting to ask me what's happening. what do i do?

Like expected, things didn't work out. Maybe this is where she starting lying to people about what was going on. It would make sense. Families are a priority when it comes to talking about what's important to someone. Family comes before friends and before enjoyment. It's only right. Also...I think I met someone who said that for funerals, they would spread the dust of the monster over their favorite thing so that they live on in their favorite thing. It seems a bit sweet at first, but then you have to think about what IS their favorite thing. It could be a watermelon for all I know. We'd have haunted watermelon everywhere if that was the case.

I head over to some sinks to see what's going on. I turn on two of them, but the third one. Something started to leak out of it. It formed some sort of face and smiled at me before getting bigger and revealing a monstrous form. I expected to have to FIGHT these things on my own, but strangely enough, Frisk's SOUL appears in battle with me. We were going to do this side-by-side. That means I can do something, then they do, then the enemy attacks. Sort of like an RPG. Huh...it's almost as if I'm in a game...but what are the odds of that? The enemies...I don't even know what they are...they're like multiple beings all meshed into one thing...maybe that's what they actually are! Something tells me that Alphys' experiment went horribly wrong. I just SPARE them, since I don't know what the heck to do. Frisk, instead, takes out their phone and listens closely. I walk over to them, and I can hear voices through the receiver.

"Come join the fun," I hear.

I quickly turn to them and shake my head "no.

"I'm sorry, but I'm actually reaaaallly busy right now!" I say,"Maybe later..."

"Be seeing you," they say.

The things disappear and leave behind a red key. It shines in the small amount of light the room has. I pick it up and attach it to the keychain on my phone. I walk into another room and see a sort of red insignia on a panel. There looked to be a sort of hole where the key is supposed to go. I put it there and it fits perfectly. I don't know what it did, but I didn't stick around long enough to care. Frisk and I run back to the Power Room to see that the rightmost door is open. We head inside and I notice two more entries.

ENTRY NUMBER 12 - nothing is happening. i don't know what to do. i'll just keep injecting everything with "determination". i want this to work.

I don't know much about experimenting on things, but one of the things I DO know is that too much of something can be a bad thing. That also applies to other things...like candy...sadly...My poor teeth need to stay white.

ENTRY NUMBER 13 - one of the bodies opened its eyes.

So...it's alive again? Instead of the SOUL being preserved after death, they're just brought back to life? I'd be happy if that was just it, but I have a feeling something horrible is going to wind up happening.

Frisk and I arrive at what looks like some sort of nursery...or hospital...inside of a lab...yeeaaaahhh, no. There's an empty dog food bowl sitting alone by itself. I write down. Looking at all of the beds, they look normal enough. Comfortable, even. One of them looked slightly different from the rest, so I head towards that one. Searching the bed sheets, I find a yellow key and put it on my keychain. I take out my diary and write down the enemies I encountered, what I've read, and the overall atmosphere of this godforsaken lab. I see another sign, number 14.

ENTRY NUMBER 14 - Everyone that had fallen down...has woken up. They're all walking around and talking like nothing is wrong. I thought they were goners...?

And so comes the point where the drastic thing happens and everything goes horribly wrong! Movies never lie to me!

I walk out in another hallway and read another entry.

ENTRY NUMBER 15 - Seems like this research was a dead end...but at least we got a happy ending out of it...? I sent the SOULs and the vessel back to ASGORE. And I called all of the families and told them everyone's alive. I'll send everyone back tomorrow. :)

Alphys felt the need to put an emoticon even in personal lab logs...that's just your daily otaku dinosaur for ya. Also...how is everyone alive. Maybe determination goes deeper than just making SOULs persist after the host dies...I have a strange feeling that something is STILL going to go horribly wrong!

ENTRY NUMBER 16 - no No NO NO NO NO NO

Aaaand there it is!

There was this room with a curtain lying at the end of it. It looked like there was the silhouette of an arm peeking through it. I slowly edge closer to the curtain, stopping for a few moments to try and get a better look at it. Frisk gets impatient and just walks to the end, opening the curtain. They pick up a green key and hands it to me, stoically. I gingerly put it on my keychain and we continue to journey the lab.

We reach a room with a strange looking machine. Frisk looks at it and frowns a slight bit. I ask them what's wrong and they look between the machine and I.

'Flowey,' they sign.

Now that I think about it...that machine DOES look a lot like the machine Flowey used to fight against me. I shudder at the memory I had with that long battle. Though I felt immense anger at what the flower did to Asgore, I was more afraid than anything else. I take out my diary and try to open it to write down what's going on, but it won't open. I try harder to pry the book open, nothing.

"Hey, Frisk," I say,"Grab one end of this thing,"

He grabs one part of the book and I grab the other. We pull at the same time and a figure comes out of the book. I don't even have enough time to question how it got in there before it attacked us both. Like last time, we have our SOULs in the same battle. I got a hint of lemons when the battle started. I 'Check' and it brings up the name Lemon Bread...well the lemon smell is self explanatory. Looking at the monstrous creation a bit more closely, my mouth drops open at what I see.

No matter how you look at it, that's definitely Shyren, Aaron, and Moldbygg all grouped into one. What in the world happened to these guys!? I know for a fact that the Shyren and Aaron that I know are alive and well. That must mean these guys are their relatives...boy are they going to be mad when they hear about this... The pieces of the Moldbygg look like the teeth on the big head of the best. It's body, but not it's head, was turned away (like Shyren). The arms on it looked exactly like Aaron's. When it spoke...jeez was it horrifying. It was three voices all at once. I could hear voices coming from every single direction.

"Welcome to my special hell," the voices say.

The creature disappears and Frisk and I are trapped in a cluster of teeth. We gather in the gaps where a tooth just so happened to be missing. This went on for a while until we're back to trying to figure out what to do. Frisk flexes and I play my clarinet. I manage to do a slower version of Shyren's song. I played it like a sort of lullaby. Both of those actions seemed to have an affect on Lemon Bread.

"But nobody came," the voices speak.

The teeth attack was easily avoidable. Frisk and I scrambled towards the safe areas. There were times when I failed to reach a certain spot in time and got chomped. It took out a large chunk of my health and I had to wind up using the Junk Food I got from the girls in the alleyway outside of MTT Resort. I was going to get chomped again before Frisk pulls me to the safe spot. I refuse to hug the creature and it seems to respect my knowledge of personal boundaries. Frisk manages to SPARE the beast and we're out of the FIGHT. Frisk was going to head off, but I just sit on the floor like a log. Frisk tries to get me to move, but I just want to rest for a slight bit.

Whatever happened down here, it was probably the worst mistake Alphys had ever made in her entire life.

* * *

 **This chapter was a bit of a fun one for me. When I played the game, the True Laboratory scared the heck out of me. The little entries that were left behind didn't make it any less creepy for me. Needless to say, this part of the game really brings out a large chunk of the plot. Who knew the shy doctor would be the cause of so much hidden chaos! Anyway, be sure to review, favorite, and follow if you enjoyed this chapter! I appreciate the feedback you guys are giving! Until then!**


	17. Facing Fears

**Sorry this chapter was released so late, but I was making the first chapter of the sequel to this story. The sequel's name is "Connected Hearts". It's a rundown of what happens when all the monsters are aboveground. I'm enjoying it's progress so far. You'll need to read this story before reading that one. There are some topics that are talked about in the sequel that you won't understand until reading this one...anyway...Until then!**

 **Please stop reading this text, my child.**

* * *

Frisk and I continue on through the lab. We reach this room with two bookcases in a sort of video player in the middle of it. There was a note near the corner of the room, but Frisk tells me that it isn't important. Going to the video player, it seems to play the five tapes that are sitting right next to it.

Tape 1...

 **"Psssst. Gorey, wake up," I hear a familiar voice say.**

 **"Mmm?" Another familiar voice groans,"What is it, dear?...err, and why do you have that video camera?"**

 **"Shush! I want to get your reaction,"The other says,"Gorey, dearest. What is my favorite vegetable?"**

 **"Hmmm...Carrots, right?" Gorey guesses.**

 **"No no no!" Says the voice,"My FAVORITE vegetable is...Eda-MOM-e...get it?"**

 **"...Go back to bed, dear," Says Gorey.**

 **"No no! Not yet!" The voice giggles,"Now, if I were a dog, what breed of dog would I be?"**

 **"Hmm...I don't know, honey. What kind of dog would you be?" Gorey asks.**

 **"I would be...A MOMERANIAN," The voice jokes.**

 **"Hohoho! You sure are excited to have this child," Says Gorey,"You know, if you keep making jokes like this...one day, you could be...a famous MOMedian,"**

 **"...Well, I am going to bed,"**

 **"Hey! Come on, Tori!" Gorey complains,"That one was funny!"**

 **The voice, presumably Tori, laughs.**

 **"I know. I am just teasing you," Tori says,"Goodnight, dear,"**

 **"Goodnight, honey," Says Gorey.**

 **"...Oh dear, perhaps it is too dark in here for the video to come out..." Says Tori.**

The video ends and Frisk is looking through the books on the shelves. So apparently, from the video...there were two people, Tori and Gorey...Tori...and Gorey...Yep, that's definitely Toriel and Asgore speaking to each other. Apparently this is before Asriel was born, proven by Asgore's words: "You sure are excited to have this child,". Besides that, there wasn't really much else to the video.

Onto the next tape...Frisk is by my side this time, watching closely.

Tape 2...

"Okay, Chara, are you ready?" I hear a young voice say,"Do your creepy face!"

The voice screams and laughs in delight a short bit after.

"Oh! Wait! I had the lens cap on..." The voice says,"What!? You're not gonna do it again...? Come on, quit tricking me!"

That sounded like the voice of the kid I went and heard in my dream in the garbage dump. And also like before, I hear the name Chara. He must've been the first ever kid to have fallen down here. The voices in Asgore's place prove that fact pretty easily. Still though, I wonder who in the world that other kid's name is...Frisk frowns as the tape ends, seemingly mulling over something.

Tape 3...

 **"Howdy, Chara!" A voice says,"Smile for the camera!"**

 **It sounds like the same kid from before.**

 **"Ha, this time I got YOU!" They say,"I left the cap on...ON PURPOSE! Now you're smiling for noooo reason!"**

 **The kid laughs and another kid, presumably Chara, speaks up. I can't quite hear what he's saying, but the kid seems to understand him completely.**

 **"What? Oh, yeah, I remember," The kid says,"When we tried to make butterscotch pie for Dad, right?"**

Butterscotch pie for Dad? That must be Asriel speaking then, the King's son. Which means the dad is Asgore.

 **"The recipe asked for cups of butter...but we accidentally put in buttercups instead," Asriel says.**

How...I don't even...

 **"Yeah! Those flowers got him really sick," Asriel says, sadly,"I felt so bad. We made Mom really upset,"**

The mother is obviously Toriel.

 **"I should have laughed it off, like you did...Um, anyway, where are you going with this?" Asriel asks,"Huh? Turn off the camera...? OK,"**

This "Chara" seems a bit cruel. Asgore gets sick and they just laugh at it? I can't imagine how Asriel dealt with the kid. I'd have left them a long time ago if I were him. But, I suppose Asriel was just happy to have some company. THAT, I can understand. I turn to Frisk and see them staring intently at the last two tapes on the table next to the player.

"Hey, who's Chara?"

Frisk turns to me with an uncomfortable sort of look. Reluctantly, they sign.

'Someone you don't want to meet,'

"Duly noted," I reply.

Tape 4...

 **"I...I don't like this idea, Chara," says Asriel,"Wh...what? N-no, I'm not...big kids don't cry"**

 **What're they up to?**

 **"Yeah, you're right. No! I'd never doubt you, Chara...Never!" Says Asriel,"We'll be strong! We'll free everyone! I'll go get the flowers,"**

They're planning to free everyone? Since Asriel was probably crying earlier, I'm assuming the way they plan to do it isn't exactly the nicest. Maybe it's taking the SOULs of the humans like Asgore planned. Frisk looks more anxious by the second and I hesitate to check the last one. I look at Frisk and they just motion for me to put the tape in.

Tape 5...

 **"Chara...Can you hear me? We want you to wake up..." says Toriel.**

 **"Chara! You have to stay determined!" Says Asgore**

I remember those words from somewhere...

 **"You can't give up...you are the future of humans and monsters..." Asgore insists.**

 **"Psst...Cakeld..." Asriel whispers,"Please...wake up...I don't like this plan anymore,"**

This must be when Chara got that sickness the people were talking about. And Asriel says he doesn't like the plan anymore...Does that mean Chara planned to get ill? What sort of thing could they be up to?

 **"I...I...no, I said...I said I'd never doubt you," Asriel recalls,"Six, right? We just have to get six...And we'll do it together, right?"**

The tape ends a moment later. Okay...so Chara planned to get sick. The voices said that Chara's SOUL was absorbed by Asriel. Does that mean they planned for Asriel to obtain that sort of power? With the power of a monster SOUL and a human SOUL...Asriel was able to leave the UNDERGROUND. I assume that they planned to have Asriel pass through the barrier so that they'd be able to collect six other SOULs from the humans. They'd already had Chara's, so that left six to go.

Finishing up all the tapes, I notice a sign on the wall.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 4 -** I've been researching humans to see if I can find any info about their SOULs. I ended up snooping around the castle...and found these weird tapes. I don't feel like ASGORE's watched them...I don't think he should.

Somehow I feel like Asgore has already seen them. How else would he know that they needed seven human SOULs to break the barrier? Unless he got the information from someone else...I can't imagine who... I turn to Frisk, who seems to have found something interesting in the room. I walk over to them and they point towards a yellow socket on the wall. I attempt to put the yellow key in the slot and it fits perfectly. Frisk and I head out of the room, past the strange machine, and into another room. We wanted to continue, but there was a fog everywhere, so we had to head back.

When we reach the room with the beds, Frisk asks me to follow them into a room towards the east. We head in that direction, and stumble across tons of golden flowers and mirrors. Heading through the strange hallway, I read the signs that were on the wall.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 7** \- We'll need a vessel to wield the monster SOULs when the time comes. After all, a monster cannot absorb the SOULs of other monsters. Just as a human cannot absorb a human SOUL...So then...what about something that's neither human nor monster?

It makes sense what Alphys is going with here. Something that isn't a human or a monster would be able to absorb both kinds of SOULs without any sort of issues.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 10** \- experiments on the vessel are a failure. it doesn't seem to be any different from the control cases. whatever. they're a hassle to work with anyway. the seeds just stick to you, and won't let go.

Walking through the hallway some more. Frisk and I see this large mirror at the end. Frisk is hesitant to walk towards it, but I just stroll on over. Looking into the mirror, I see a perfectly normal reflection. I turn to Frisk and speak.

"It's okay! What's the matter with you?"

Frisk points towards the mirror again, backing away slowly. I turn around and scream, backing away quickly as well. I lose my footing and trip backwards. My reflection was reaching its arm out of the mirror, attempting to grab me. Eventually, it manages to pull itself out of the mirror completely. Our SOULs appeared and the FIGHT was on.

I...don't even know what the heck that thing was. It looked like some sort of weird bird thing. It definitely looked like one. I could see an Astigmatism as the head of the enemy. I don't know if it was obvious, but I could see both Whimsalot and Final Froggit making up this entire being. If this was like the last being I fought, then I can safely say that we'll need to use our knowledge of prior enemies to SPARE this one. Knowing it was made up of parts of Whimsalot, I pray for safety while Frisk mystifies it.

I see a being appear. I don't know what it was, but it was white and had a black sort of whole where it's eye would be. Butterflies come out of nowhere and swarm its head violently. It writhes in pain and grabs its head. The butterflies disperse for a small moment and I can see what happened to the figure. Its head is missing. I try and scream, but the sound gets stuck in my throat.

The butterflies start flying in Frisk and I's direction. Frisk manages to dodge rather easily, but I get struck a few times because the butterflies felt that it would be a smart idea to swarm. After the butterflies disappear for good, we decide to pick on the bird-like enemy, seeing that it was made up of an Astigmatism. It was at that moment we heard the three monsters forming the being speak clearly.

"Someone finally gets it,"

"Ribbit ribbit,"

"Courage..."

It then identifies itself as "Reaper Bird". What a horrific name...The being from before grows its head back and launches it at us. We dodge the heads alright, but we both eventually take damage. The heads are large and they continually twist and turn in all directions. That made it a bit difficult to avoid them. Eventually, we're able to SPARE the enemy, it having it's memory back. It disappears and I quickly move to the next room, afraid of any more attacks. In the next room, I see another socket on the wall. I guess we need a key for that one. I see Frisk pick up a note and read it over.

'Somewhere cold,' They sign,'Search there,'

-88-

We reach a room with a ton of fans everywhere. I see a sign on the wall as I walk in.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 11** \- now that mettaton's made it big, he never talks to me anymore...except to ask when i'm going to finish his body. but i'm afraid if i finish his body, he won't need me anymore...then we'll never be friends ever again...not to mention, every time i try to work on it, i just get really sweaty...

So Alphys had to deal with the failed experiments AND the fact that her creation was going to abandon her for fame? Rough life...I guess being famous does that to you, you cut yourself off from others to enjoy the big life.

Frisk walks to the end of the room and cuts on all of the fans. This made the fog clear up and let us see more of the room. What we didn't realize was that there was a cluster of matter above us. It was broken up like shattered glass. But as the fog disappeared the matter started to group into a being. It looks like some sort of mutated dog. It grows to a large size and slowly edges towards Frisk. Frisk engages a FIGHT with it and I'm pulled in as well. I check the enemy while Frisk beckons it towards them. A strange liquid pours out of the orifice on its head. I cringed at the sight of it. Apparently, it's name is "The Amalgamate". It attacks by dashing towards us with an impressive amount of speed. We dodge it easily and go back to fighting.

Frisk pets the Amalgamate and it rests quietly for a bit. It then shoots away and starts crawling all over the walls. Arrows began to shoot out of the orifice on its head. We dodge them rather easily, taking only minor damage. Frisk throws a stick they've been keeping around. The Amalgamate brings it back and rests itself on Frisk. Frisk looks towards me, a bit uncomfortable. I giggle a small bit at the sight, even if the giant Amalgamate was a bit terrifying.

Frisk and I shower the Amalgamate with petting. It started twitching a lot, convulsing more and more before finally calming down, satisfied. I could see five dog silhouettes within it. I assume this Amalgamate is made up of various dogs. 'Check'ing the Amalgamate one last time, it reveals itself as "Endogeny". Apparently "Amalgamate" is not its real name. That must mean Amalgamate was just something used to identify what the heck it was. If I remember, Amalgamate means to combine to form one being. That must mean that the other two enemies we've fought were also Amalgamates.

After the battle ends, Frisk and I head out of this room and back to the foggy one. We assumed that since the fans were on, the room would be perfectly clear. We were right. The room was clear, and there wasn't a single area hidden away. I read another entry on the wall.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 19** \- the families keep calling me to ask when everyone is coming home. what am i supposed to say? i don't even answer the phone anymore.

So Alphys, realizing her big mistake, cuts herself off from everyone in fear of them hating her. That's what I get out of this. This must have been the cause of her reclusive nature. I head over to the next entry.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 20** \- ASGORE left me five messages today. four about everyone being angry. one about this cute teacup he found that looks like me. thanks asgore.

A refrigerator shakes and I freeze. Frisk heads over to it and opens it, it's empty inside.

 **ENTRY NUMBER 21** \- i spend all my time at the garbage dump now. it's my element.

Alphys, feeling shame, stays at the garbage dump instead of facing her problems and telling the truth. All of the fridges looked and acted the same. I was about to head into the next room before one of the fridges reveals itself to be another Amalgamate. I had to get a bit of a look at it. It looked like a Snowdrake fused with two vegetoids. Seeing that it was a Snowdrake, Frisk and I start telling bad puns about snow and ice. The Amalgamate's expression begins to shift before it calms down. I take a closer look at it and my heart sank when I realized who it was...

Snowdrake's mother...

She disappears a short while later and I'm left with a blue key lying on the floor. Putting it on my keychain, Frisk and I head into the next room. There was a green socket in the wall, I place the green key inside and continue on. At the other end of the lab, I put the blue key into the socket. All keys are secured. That means...

The center door of the lab opened for Frisk and I. We walk inside to reach another elevator. Unfortunately, it failed to work. So, we headed off west of where we came in. There were two more entries on the wall, but they were turned off. We eventually reach this large room, there was a button on this machine at the end of the room. Besides that...nothing else was in here at all. It was a very empty place. I press the switch, turning the power on, and a bunch of Amalgamates come up from behind and slowly edge towards us. They were quickly advancing, making sporadic noises here and there as they closed in on us. Frisk stands in front of me, preparing themselves for a FIGHT. Suddenly, our savior appeared.

"Hey!" they say,"Stop!"

Alphys quickly rushes into the room. The amalgamates look at her, straight-faced.

"I got you guys some food, okay!?" She yells.

They quickly hurry off at the mention of the word "food". I'm left staring wide-eyed at the leaving Amalgamates. Alphys hurriedly explains what's going on.

"Sorry about that..." She says,"They get kind of sassy when they don't get fed on time,"

Of all the words you could've used, YOU CHOSE "SASSY"!? THEY WERE GOING TO GRIND ME INTO A HUMAN PASTE! THAT'S MURDEROUS! NOT "SASSY"!

"Um, anyway, the power went out, and I've been trying to turn it back on!" Alphys says,"But it seems like you were one step ahead of me. This was probably just a big inconvenience for you...B-but I appreciate that you came here to back me up! As I said, I was afraid I might...not come back..."

"Is it beca-"

"But that's not because of these guys or anything!"

"Uh-huh," I say sarcastically,"And this is Frisk, my newborn,"

Frisk looks at me with a shocked expression on their face, their hazel eyes completely visible. I quickly explain it was sarcasm before they blink and close their eyes again.

"I was just worried I would be too afraid...to tell the truth...that I might run away or do something...cowardly," Alphys says.

Well, thanks for giving me a valid reason! Bravo, Alphys!

"Uh...I...I suppose I owe you an explanation," She begins.

'As you probably know, ASGORE asked me to study the nature of SOULs.'

She is really going to explain all of this AGAIN even after I-

'During my research, I isolated a power I called "determination".'

'I injected it into dying monsters so their SOULs would last after death.'

'But the experiment failed.'

'You see, unlike humans', monsters' bodies don't have enough...physical matter to take those concentrations of "determination".'

This is proven by the words in the books of the Snowdin Library. Monsters are basically their SOULs and magic meshed into one. Since it's magic and not physical matter, they work vastly different from humans.

'Their bodies started to melt, and lost what physicality they had.'

'Pretty soon, all of the test subjects had melted together into...Those.'

'Seeing them like this, I knew...I couldn't tell their families about it. I couldn't tell anyone about it.'

'No matter how much everyone was asking me.'

'And I was too afraid to do any more work, knowing...everything I'd done so far had been such a horrific failure.'

'...But now, now I've changed my mind about all this.'

'I'm going to tell everyone what I've done.'

'It's going to be hard. Being honest...believing in myself...'

'I'm sure there will be times where I'll struggle.'

'I'm sure there will be times where I screw up again.'

'But knowing, deep down, that I have friends to fall back on...'

'I know it'll be a lot easier to stand on my own.'

'Thank you'

The Amalgamates come back and gather around Alphys.

"Come on, guys," Alphys says,"It's time for everyone to go home,"

As I walk back into the hallway, I see that the entries on the walls are back on. Naturally, I read them.

ENTRY NUMBER 8 - I've chosen a candidate. I haven't told ASGORE yet, because I want to surprise him with it...In the center of his garden, there's something special. The first golden flower, that grew before all the others. The flower from the outside world. It appeared just before the queen left. I wonder...what happens when something without a SOUL gains the will to live?

So...a golden flower...that gained the will to-

Oh my god that's Flowey...

ENTRY NUMBER 18 - the flower's gone.

When Frisk and I reach the elevator, my phone rings. Picking it up, I hear a voice that I've never heard before.

"Chara...are you there?" It says,"It's been a long time, hasn't it...? But you've done well. Thanks to you, everything has fallen into place. Chara...see you soon,"

The phone clicks off and the doors leading out of the elevator close. Frisk and I are locked inside and we're sent upwards inside of the elevator. Red lights begin to flash and my vision is quickly obscured. When I can finally see again, Frisk and I are in Asgore's castle. The elevator is covered in vines, making it unusable. As I stare ahead, Frisks gives me a look that says "are you ready?"

To be honest, I'm not sure if I am. But one thing is for sure...

 **No going back now.**

* * *

 **That's all that's going to be in this chapter! I was hoping to finish up the True Laboratory and I succeeded! Next up, the final boss! I hope my writing makes it as enjoyable as the game's version. Probably not, my writing pales in comparison to the game. It truly is something special. Anyways, this was one of my favorite chapters to write so far. Mostly because of what Alphys said at the end. Anyway, be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this story. Until then!**


	18. We're Reunited

**I'm such a lazybones. I was planning to get this out yesterday, but I procrastinated to near death. Hopefully, this chapter makes up for me being the laziest human aboveground. This chapter involves the final battle between Anna and Asriel! I'm planning on making this a bit more heartwarming! Although, I don't know if I'll succeed in that...Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter my lazy self went and typed up. Until then!**

 **HUMAN! PLEASE STOP READING THIS TEXT!**

* * *

Frisk and I take the walk through Asgore's castle once more. We walk throughout the area and check every nook and cranny just to see if anything had changed. Nothing. Everything was as it was when I left. Eventually, we come to the Final Corridor. The floating clock symbols had gone. All, but one. Though, nothing seemed to be going on with it, so we left it alone. I head back to where Asgore was. He was still waiting patiently in that same spot. He seems to have noticed me walking into the door. Frisk hangs back in the other room.

'This is YOUR battle, not mine,' signs Frisk,'Good luck,'

Frisk then turns and runs back into the castle. The battle between Asgore and I begin. Hopefully this time things will handle themselves better. Maybe I'll wind up in that dark void again. But at least Alphys and I are friends now. She isn't hiding any secrets anymore. They'll be better off when this is all said and done...I hope.

'A strange light fills the room.'

'Twilight is shining through the-

YEAH YEAH! GET ON WITH IT ALREADY!

'You're filled with...DETERMINATION'

"Human...It was nice to meet you," Asgore says,"Goodbye,"

He was about to take his trident out before a fireball is fired and launches him out of the way. Out of the shadows steps Toriel, looking happy to see me.

"What a miserable creature, torturing such a poor innocent, youth," She says.

Miserable creature? That's an awfully harsh thing to call your husband. Although, considering that they've divorced...that's to be expected.

"Do not be afraid, my child," Toriel says,"It is I, TORIEL, your friend and guardian,"

How'd she know I was all the way up here?...Frisk, maybe? Nah, they were with me the entire time.

"At first, I thought I would let you make your journey alone...but could not stop worrying about you," She says,"Your adventure must have been so treacherous,"

Well, besides Undyne, Photoshop Flowey, the True Laboratory, falling down here in the first place, meeting that demon flower, having to leave you behind, fight SPIDERS, almost getting annihilated by a flamboyant robot, and killing Mr. Dad Guy...I've been alright! How are you?

"...And ultimately, it would burden you with a horrible choice,"She explains,"To leave this place, you would have to take the life of another person. You would have to defeat ASGORE. However...I realized...I cannot allow that. It is not right to sacrifice someone simply to let someone leave here. Is that not what I have been trying to prevent this whole time?"

Goat Mom...you stayed in the RUINS for my entire adventure. I could've used this little speech before Photoshop Flowey came up and started attacking me with his "friendliness pellets"...It still sounds weird.

"So, for now, let us suspend this battle,"Toriel finishes,"As terrible as ASGORE is, he deserves mercy, too,"

I for one found Goat Dad to be pretty nice! Sure, he nearly killed me, but I'm sure everyone has tried to kill me ONCE. Well, not Sans, of course...but you get the idea! Asgore edges over to us, smiling a tiny bit.

"Tori..." He says,"You came back..."

"Do not "Tori" me, Dreemurr! You pathetic whelp," Toriel retorts,"If you really wanted to free out kind, you could have gone through the barrier after you got ONE SOUL, taken six SOULs from the humans, then come back and freed everyone peacefully,"

Wait...HE COULD'VE DONE THAT THE ENTIRE TIME!? THOSE SIX OTHER CHILDREN!

"But instead, you made everyone live in despair," Toriel says,"Because you would rather wait here, meekly hoping another human never comes,"

Asgore looks down at the floor in shame. It's upsetting to see him like this, but I'm a bit afraid of Toriel right now.

"Tori...you're right...I am a miserable creature..." Asgore admits,"but, do you think we can at least be friends again?"

Toriel sighs and gives an annoyed look.

"NO, Asgore," She says.

Well, this is personal...I'm taking the one way trip outta this room. I was about to head out before Undyne tramples over me.

"AGHHH MY LEG!" I yell.

"ASGORE! Human! Nobody fight each other!" Undyne yells,"Everyone's gonna make friends, or else I'll...!"

Undyne looks at me, Asgore, and Toriel. Toriel seems this is a fitting time to make small talk.

"Hello. I am TORIEL. Are you the human's friend?," Toriel asks,"It is nice to meet you,"

"Uh...yeah?" Undyne replies,"Nice to meet you!"

Undyne walks over to Asgore, speaking to him in a quiet way. I can't hear her and neither can Toriel.

I was about to get up before Alphys runs over me.

"AGHHH MY OTHER LEG!"

"H-hey!" Alphys says,"Nobody hurt each other!"

"Oh! Are you another friend?" Toriel asks,"I am TORIEL. Hello!"

"Uh, h-h-hi!" Alphys says.

Alphys then looks between Toriel and Asgore in a bewildered way, as if she was looking at the same person. She then walks up to Undyne and starts chatting with her. I attempt to get up again before Papyrus knocks me down again.

"EVERYTHING HURTS!"

"HEY! NOBODY FIGHT ANYONE!" Papyrus says,"IF ANYONE FIGHTS ANYONE...! THEN I'LL BE FORCED TO ASK UNDYNE FOR HELP!"

"Hello!" Says Toriel.

"OH! HELLO, YOUR MAJESTY!" Papyrus replies.

Papyrus looks down at my crippled body and whispers.

"PSST! HEY, HUMAN...DID ASGORE SHAVE...AND...CLONE HIMSELF?"

"That's the Queen you goof," I say quietly.

Papyrus looks between Asgore and Toriel a few times, wanting to make sure I was telling the truth. His jaw drops a small bit.

"...OH...WELL THEN," He says.

I'm then picked up by a blue magic and placed on someone's shoulder. It looked like I was using them as a crutch. I look over and see Sans grinning at me. I smile wide at seeing another familiar face...that isn't hurting my limbs.

"Sans!" I laugh.

"hey, kid," Sans greets,"hey guys, what's up?"

Toriel gives a shocked look and quickly moves over to Sans and I.

"That voice...!" Toriel says,"Hello, I think we may...know each other?"

"oh hey...i recognize your voice, too," Sans replies.

It was at this moment that Frisk enters the room. They greet everyone and a talk is struck up around every corner of the room. Alphys and Undyne are comforting Asgore, Toriel telling puns to a frustrated Papyrus, and Sans and Frisk were checking me for wounds. I was bandaged up a small bit; there were bandages secured around my right leg.

"Come on, ASGORE! It's gonna be OK!" Says Undyne,"There are plenty of fish in the sea..."

"Y-yeah, ASGORE!" Alphys agrees,"Undyne's totally right about that fish thing! S-sometimes you've just got to, uh...S-stop going after furry boss monsters and, uh...J-just get to know a really cute fish...?"

Undyne looks at Alphys with a small grin. Alphys quickly tries to explain those words.

"It's a metaphor,"

"Well, I think it's a good analogy,"

Mettaton sticks his foot out of the doorway. Everyone gives a bit of a disturbed look for a small second.

"OH MY GOD!" Mettaton says,"WILL YOU TWO JUST SMOOCH ALREADY!? THE AUDIENCE IS DYING FOR SOME ROMANCE ACTION!"

"HEY, SHUT UP!" Undyne yells,"Man, the nerve of that guy! Right Alphys!?...Uh, Alphys?"

Alphys is standing there, thinking for a bit. She seems to be considering what Mettaton was saying earlier.

"No, he's right," Alphys says,"LET'S DO IT,"

Undyne gives an unsure look for a small moment.

"Well? Uh? I guess? If you want to? Then?" Undyne says,"Don't hold anything back!"

As they closed in on each other, Sans covers my eyes. Frisk just looks the other way. Toriel intervenes and stops them both from kissing.

"W-wait!" Toriel interrupts,"Not in front of the human!"

Undyne and Alphys sort each other out and sit in awkward silence for a moment. Everyone gathers around for a while and settles for a bit.

"My child, it seems as if you must stay here for a while," Toriel says,"But looking at all the great friends you have made...I think...I think you will be happy here,"

"H-hey, that reminds me. Papyrus...YOU called everyone here, right? Well, besides, uh, her" Alphys says,"Uh, anyway, if I got here before you...how did you know how to call everybody?"

"LET'S JUST SAY...A TINY FLOWER HELPED ME," Papyrus says.

...Wait a second...

"A tiny...flower?" Alphys asks.

As soon as her words are finished, a large vine comes out and tangles everyone. I'm released from Sans' grip and dropped to the floor. I roll for a bit before Frisk, not grabbed by vines, comes over and helps me to my feet. Flowey appears.

"You IDIOTS," Flowey says,"While you guys were having your little pow-wow...I took the human SOULS! And now, not only are THOSE under my power...But all of your FRIENDS' SOULS are gonna be mine, too!"

'And you know what the best part is? It's all your fault'

'It's all because you MADE THEM love you.'

'All that time you spent listening to them...encouraging them...caring about them...'

'Without that, they wouldn't have come here.'

'And now, with their souls and the humans' together...I will achieve my REAL FORM.'

'Huh? WHY am I still doing this?'

'Don't you get it?'

'This is all just a GAME.'

'If you leave the underground satisfied, you'll "win" the game.'

'If you "win", you won't want to "play" with me anymore.'

'And what would I do then?'

'But this game between us will NEVER end.'

'I'll hold victory in front of you, just within your reach...And then tear it away just before you grasp it.'

'Over, and over, and over,'

'If you DO defeat me, I'll give you your "happy ending".'

'I'll bring your friends back.'

'I'll destroy the barrier.'

'Everyone will finally be satisfied.'

'But that WON'T happen.'

'You...! I'll keep you here no matter what!'

'Even if it means killing you 1,000,000 times!'

Bullets began to strike me, again and again. I couldn't move, I was tangled with vines like everyone else. Frisk reached for my dagger and tried to cut the vines, but their arm was quickly restrained as well. They could only try and free themselves with their other arm. Standing itself was starting to get more painful as time went on. As the last set of bullets come in, a wall of fire pushes them back. I look up to see Toriel, smiling at me. She managed to free her arm and save me just in time.

"Do not be afraid my child," She says,"No matter what happens, we will always be there to protect you!"

Bullets appeared again, but were blocked by spears and bones. Sans, Papyrus, and Undyne had saved me this time.

"THAT'S RIGHT, HUMAN! YOU CAN WIN!" Papyrus encourages,"JUST DO WHAT I WOULD DO: BELIEVE IN YOU!"

"Hey! Human! If you got past ME, you can do ANYTHING!" Undyne says,"So don't worry! We're with you all the way!"

"huh? you haven't beaten this guy yet?" Sans asks,"come on, anna, this weirdo's got nothin' on you,"

Once again, bullets. This time, though, they were blocked by electricity and flames.

"Technically, it's impossible for you to beat him," Alphys says,"B-but...Somehow, I know you can do it!"

"Human, for the future of humans and monsters...!" Asgore says,"You have to stay determined...!"

One by one, monsters filled the place. I could clearly see Aaron, Shyren, the dogs, and everyone else that helped me back at Snowdin. I could clearly get a glimpse of the others that I've met and fought with in the UNDERGROUND. Greater Dog throws his spear and it cuts through the vines holding me. Shyren and Aaron untangle Frisk. We all stand against Flowey, ready to FIGHT for our future.

'La la la la!'

'We're with you too!'

'C'mon you got this!'

'You've GOT to win!'

'You can do it!'

'Ribbit.'

I could hear their voices (and croaks) fill the area, helping me continue on. If I had any wounds, I couldn't feel them. I wasn't going to let an injury keep me from getting rid of Flowey. Flowey looked distraught, surprised at all the people that came to help me. But that quickly changed as his grin turned monstrous and he laughed at us demonically.

"I can't believe you're all so STUPID!" He says,"ALL OF YOUR SOULS ARE MINE!"

My vision is clouded with white.

-88-

I don't know where I was. All I knew was that it was dark. I could see a small kid with his back turned to me.

"Finally," a boy's voice sounds out,"I was so tired of being a flower,"

He turns to face me for a bit. He looks sort of like the kid that I saw in the lo- Oh my god that's Asriel. I guess Flowey getting a SOUL finally helped Asriel come back.

"Well...Howdy!" Asriel says,"It's me...Asriel Dreemurr,"

He gradually changes into a monstrous figure. He was much bigger and showed horns now. I could see the Delta Rune on his robe. It was finally the end. It was finally time...My SOUL appears at my center and it's time for the final battle.

His fire attack is sent after me. It was something that looked exactly like Toriel and Asgore's. That made it very easy to avoid. The room suddenly became a swarm of colors.

"The true final battle" was finally beginning.

His attack suddenly changed. Gigantic stars begin to rain from the sky and pelt the ground. They exploded and released smaller stars that were about the same size as my SOUL. I managed to dodge the most of them, but the last one released too many stars for me to dodge easily. I took damage. Asriel was pretty strong after all of those SOULs he gathered. I couldn't lose my focus on victory when it was so close. Regardless of Flowey says, regardless of me not meaning to exist, I wasn't going to let him take my one chance at a good future away from me.

"You know...I don't care about destroying this world anymore," Asriel says.

Lightning strikes began to hit the ground. I failed to get the timing right and I take damage from them. However, it didn't hurt as much as I thought it would. I guess I dodged a bullet there.

"After I defeat you and gain total control over the timeline...I just want to reset everything," Asriel says.

Two swords appear from Asriel's hands. He moves from side to side and attempts to slice me with them. I just moved the opposite way from where he was moving and I was safe. Although, at the end, he stays in the middle and throws both of the swords. I stayed in the middle like him and I was okay there. The swords burst into stars and I'm forced to slip between them and not take damage. That seemed like his easiest attack so far.

"All your progress... Everyone's memories,"Asriel says,"I'll bring them all back to zero!"

The lightning from before shoots down. I've got the pattern a small bit, but then the large strikes happen and I take damage from them.

"Then we can do everything ALL over again,"

The big stars shoot down from the sky again. The small stars were pretty easy to dodge like before. I keep making missteps and taking damage from them though. I was doing okay, however, I was hurt, but I was alright.

"And you know what the best part of all this is? You'll DO it,"

Well, he's right. More lightning, but this time, I've got the timing down. I don't take any damage from any of the sudden strikes.

"And then you'll lose to me again,"

Asriel figures that it's time to step up his game. He produces a large gun and starts shooting bullets at me. It had four lines, presumably for aiming. One of them aimed at me. I stepped out of the way and kept moving. The bullets were so fast I could just keep moving and they'd pass right on by. This time, the bullets weren't aiming at me, so I didn't move. They passed through me quickly.

"And again,"

The sword attack got predictable. It was too easy to dodge. The stars at the end gave me no issues either.

"And again!"

The gun from before caused me to pay attention to the lines it cast. I wasn't able to get as clear of a look because Asriel figured it'd be smart to step up the speed of his firing. I take damage because Asriel was shooting too quickly. Asriel then fires large colorful beam at the end of his attack. This one was easier to dodge because he didn't move while it was firing. No damage there.

"Because you want a 'happy ending',"

The lightning strikes were much faster. Then, they all gathered in one spot and aimed straight for me slowly. Then, one by one, bigger strikes headed in my direction. I had to quickly move out of the way of the last one to avoid any sort of damage.

"Because you 'love your friends',"

More stars than before started to appear. So many of them gathered in an area and caused me to take damage. Then, the big star at the end exploded into smaller stars that curved in the aim. That thew me off and I took damage from them.

Because you "never give up."

The gun attack was much faster than before. I had to edge bit by bit to avoid taking any sort of unnecessary damage. At the end, when he fired the laser, stars began to emanate from the gun and head towards me. There was a big cluster of them that trapped me and caused me to take damage.

"Isn't that delicious? Your 'determination.' The power that let you get this far... It's gonna be your downfall!" Asriel says,"Now, ENOUGH messing around! It's time to purge this timeline once and for all!"

A gigantic skull appears at the center of the dark room I was suddenly put into. It slowly started to swallow the room. Bullets were being pulled into it. I had to avoid being swallowed and avoid being hit by the bullets. I only took damage from one of them, but I instantly felt like collapsing.

"... even after that attack, you're still standing in my way...? Wow... you really ARE something special. But don't get cocky. Up until now, I've only been using a fraction of my REAL power! Let's see what good your DETERMINATION is against THIS!" Asriel says.

He gradually begins to increase in size. My vision becomes a pure white once again.

-88-

"Urah ha ha... Behold my TRUE power!" he says.

Asriel...looked demonic! He had large wings that came out from his sides. The bottom part of his body was an EXTREMELY sharp heart. I could see his SOUL in the center of his body. I tried to reach for my diary to prevent all of this, but I couldn't move. He sent bullets after me, I couldn't dodge the gigantic cluster...my SOUL shattered into pieces...I thought it was all over...

...But it refused.

"I can feel it... Every time you die, your grip on this world slips away. Every time you die, your friends forget you a little more. Your life will end here, in a world where no one remembers you..." Asriel claims.

More bullets came about. They'd hit me with an enormous amount of damage. I couldn't move at all. Everything I wanted to do was completely halted. It hurt to stand, it hurt to breathe a small bit.

"Still you're hanging on...? That's fine. In a few moments, you'll forget everything, too. That attitude will serve you well in your next life!"

More bullets...I couldn't move still, like usual. My SOUL shatters, but rejoins itself quickly after. I'm not giving up now, even if I can only edge at tiny bit.

"Ura ha ha... Still!? Come on... Show me what good your DETERMINATION is now!"

Though my SOUL rejoining itself had healed me completely, the bullets knocked them back down pretty quickly. I try and move, nothing happened. Trying again, nothing worked. I then try to reach for my diary, I couldn't. Trying once more...futile. However, if I still have enough power within me, I can help SAVE someone else. I look towards Asriel's SOUL. It was made up of all the SOULs in the underground. If that's true, then...

"TORIEL! ASGORE!" I yell,"Are you two still in there!? Can you hear me!?"

They're in there somewhere, aren't they? If so, then there's still a chance...Toriel and Asgore show up. They're completely gray though. No pupils at all, they looked saddened.

"Hey, you remember, right?" I ask Toriel,"I prefer cinnamon over butterscotch,"

She nods slowly, remembering my words from so long ago.

Circles of flames surround me. I manage to edge out of the way of them because they were moving so slow. There was no issue dodging them.

"Asgore, I know your duty is to protect your people and lead them," I begin,"But...I know you don't want to fight. So, I won't fight you either!"

All at once, their colors came back to their forms. Their pupils appeared again and they both gave me a comforting look.

"Your fate is up to you know!" Toriel says.

"You are our future!" Asgore says.

They slowly fade out of my vision. Seeing Asriel once more, I call out to the others.

"Papyrus! Sans!" I yell,"You two gotta come back and make me laugh again!"

They slowly fade into view. Like Toriel and Asgore, no colors. But their faces were obscured by smoke this time. I couldn't even see their skulls.

"Hey, Papyrus, I have a puzzle for you," I say,"It involves pressing buttons and moving blocks. So...wanna help me?"

Papyrus quickly clasps his hands together, jumping up and down a small bit. I guess he really wanted to help.

Their attacks involved my SOUL turning blue. I jumped over the attacks they launched at me. It was rather easy, considering that there weren't too many.

"Sans, you think that skeletons use **telebones** to call people?" I joke.

Though I couldn't see his face, I could faintly hear his laugh. His laugh eventually stopped being faded and I could hear it very clearly. I could also hear Papyrus groaning loudly. They got their color back, and I could see their faces again.

"NO! WAIT! YOU'RE MY FRIEND! I COULD NEVER CAPTURE YOU!" Papyrus says.

"nah, i'm rootin for ya, anna," Sans says.

"HEY! UNDYNE! ALPHYS! COME ON OUT!" I yell.

Both of them appeared, colorless, without pupils like the others. They looked sad, like Toriel and Asgore. I smile widely at Undyne, because I remember she loves doing that. Her mouth started to turn upwards, but it's just pulled back into a frown.

My SOUL turns green and I block the spears that were aimed at me. My SOUL then brightens to yellow and I'm suddenly shooting down miniature Mettatons and blocks.

"Hey, Alphys, what's your favorite anime?" I ask.

She fiddles with her hands a bit and shifts from her left to right leg repeatedly. I'd better stop there before she gives me the biggest answer in history. Both of their colors return to them and they smile at me.

"Well, some humans are OK, I guess!" Undyne says.

"No, my friends like me! And I like you, too!" Alphys says.

Back to Asriel...though all of my friends were okay...I feel like I'm forgetting someone. And then I realized...the answer was right in front of me. The person that had been trying so hard to stop me, was the one that needed help the most.

"Asriel...I know you don't want this mess to end, but think of your family!"

"Huh? What are you doing...?" he asks.

My vision is suddenly filled with the memories of Chara and Asriel. The time when Chara fell down. The time Asriel brought Chara back to Toriel and Asgore. The happy moments Asriel had. It was bittersweet. Chara wasn't around anymore...Those memories faded away and brought me back to the Asriel in front of me.

"Wh... what did you do...? What's this feeling...? What's happening to me? No! NO! I don't need ANYONE!" Asriel yells.

More bullets began to appear, but they were much weaker than before. Though there were many, they didn't do much to me.

"STOP IT! Get away from me! Do you hear me!? I'll tear you apart!" Asriel threatens.

He fires the bullets again, but there were much less of them. One of them hit me, but the pain was almost nonexistant

"...Anna...do you know why I'm doing this...?" Asriel asks,"Why I keep fighting to keep them around...?"

Fire begins to come down, but it purposely avoids me, like it did with Toriel.

'I'm doing this...'

'Because they're special, Anna.'

'They're the only one that understands me.'

'They're the only one who's any fun to play with anymore.'

"Frisk?" I ask.

"...No, Chara," Asriel answers.

'And... No... That's not JUST it. I... I... I'm doing this because I care about them, Anna!'

'I care about them more than anybody else!'

'I'm not ready for this to end. I'm not ready for them to leave.'

'I'm not ready to say goodbye to someone like them again...'

'So, please... STOP doing this...'

'AND JUST LET ME WIN!'

He fires a beam that covers my entire range. I can't move out of the way of it because it was so large. Even if it hurt, I had to hang on...

'STOP IT!'

'STOP IT NOW!'

It was so hard to move, every part of my body hurt. But there I was, alive as ever. I was okay, even if I was badly wounded.

'... Chara...'

'I'm so alone, Chara...'

'I'm so afraid, Chara...'

'Chara, I... I...'

-88-

Asriel and I were face to face. He had gone back to his normal self after that entire ordeal. Asriel rubbed his eyes and frowned. I got a better look at him. He had a green and white striped shirt.

"Chara was right, I always was a crybaby," Asriel says.

I frown at the thought. Though, after hearing about Chara, I can imagine him saying that perfectly. It's quite unnerving.

"One thing I have to ask, Asriel," I say,"Why keep Frisk around?"

"...Chara's SOUL is within his," Asriel responds,"It happened when Frisk fell on his grave,"

"Which is...?"

"That bed of golden flowers,"

I give a horrified look and check myself for any signs of possession. Asriel laughs a small bit and tells me that I'm okay.

"Anna, I haven't felt like this for a long time," Asriel says.

'As a flower, I was soulless, I lacked the power to love other people.'

'However, with everyone's souls inside me...I not only have my own compassion back...But I can feel every other monster's as well.'

'They all care about each other so much.'

'And...they care about you too, Anna.'

'I wish I could tell you how everyone feels about you.'

'Papyrus...Sans...Undyne...Alphys...Toriel.'

'Monsters are weird.'

'Even though they barely know you...it feels like they all really love you.'

'Anna...I...I understand if you can't forgive me.'

'I understand if you hate me.'

'I acted so strange and horrible.'

'I hurt you. I hurt so many people.'

'Friends, family, bystanders...'

'There's no excuse for what I've done.'

"...It's alright," I say,"I forgive you, Asriel!"

"W-what?" He says,"...Anna, come on. You're...You're gonna make me cry again,"

'Besides...even if you do forgive me...I can't keep these souls inside of me.'

'The least I can do is return them.'

'But first, there's something I have to do.'

'Right now, I can feel everyone's hearts beating as one.'

'They're all burning with the same desire.'

'With everyone's power...With everyone's determination.'

'It's time for monsters...to finally go free.'

Asriel floats up in the air a small bit. The human SOULs are released from him along with the SOULs of the monsters. As my vision is filled with white, I hear a large breaking sound. The barrier was destroyed. Asriel floats back to the ground and turns to me. He tilts his head down in shame.

"Anna, I have to go now. Without the power of everyone's souls, I can't keep maintaining this form," Asriel says,"In a little while, I'll turn back into a flower. I'll stop being 'myself'. I'll stop being able to feel love again. So, Anna, it's best if you just forget about me, OK? Just go be with the people who love you,"

I say nothing to Asriel. I walk up to him and give him a hug. He pauses for a moment, shocked, before locking his arms around me. I rub his back and he tightens his grip, crying softly. Our special moment was over, however, Asriel pulls away and points towards something behind me. Turning around, I saw the floating clock symbol from back in Asgore's castle. It was the only one there, but somehow it managed to stick around. I could see two hands stick out from it. They were from two different people. As the two managed to leave the symbol and fall to the ground, their faces looking down at it, their hair preventing me from seeing their faces. I got a better look at the two of them. I didn't need to say who they were, Asriel spoke before I did.

"...Chara!?" He says, confused.

"Not only that...who..." I pause before my eyes widened.

The other kid looks up at me, face covered in dust from monsters.

There I was, staring at myself...only...one of us had not a dagger, but a knife...

 **...And it wasn't a toy either.**

-88-

I didn't have much time to recover from my slight shock before Asriel and I were being assaulted with tons of knives. We managed to dodge rather easily. I don't know how long Asriel was going to hold out before he turned back into Flowey. Chara wasn't attacking however. The clarinet case on my other's back was rattling. That meant it was broken. That also meant that Sans never fixed it...probably because... **oh**.

"Sans said something about me killing everyone," I say,"W-why!?"

Other Me answers, trying to hit me while she does so.

"Simple, it's BORING!" she says,"Having everyone safe and all is great, but it gets a bit tiring after a while. Thanks to you, I can relive annihilating everyone all over again!"

"Y-you freak!"

Asriel yanks me out of the way just as she tries to stab me. Asriel pulls out a star, the one he had from the fight earlier. It was small, probably because his power is fading away.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

"Making it so that this doesn't drag on for long," Asriel says.

He points towards the large buttons that are circling above my other self. FIGHT, ACT, ITEM, and MERCY. Asriel holds the star in both hand and fires a beam from it. It is launched straight towards the ITEM option. As it continues on past Other Me, it hits it, shattering it to pieces. Now, Other Me couldn't heal themselves. I saw what Asriel wanted to do. He was about to aim towards the FIGHT option before the star fades away.

"I'm sorry..." Asriel says,"That's all I can manage, apparently,"

"No worries!" I reassure,"That's more helpful than you realize!"

"You're still trying?" Other Me asks,"Taking away the ITEM option won't save you from me,"

She edged towards us. We couldn't leave the area; the place was a void, there was nowhere to go. I couldn't FIGHT. Frisk had taken my dagger to cut the vines off of me earlier. They got tied up by the vines themselves, though. After we were freed, I forgot to pick it up. Asriel couldn't help anymore, his power was weakening with every passing moment. Chara was completely defenseless; they had no weapon or defensive item. They were watching the other Anna try to kill Asriel and I. Chara seemed to be completely focused on Asriel being okay, because they were wide-eyed.

"You want to know the best part?" Other me asks,"They'll blame YOU for it. The innocent one,"

"W-what do you mean!?" I ask.

"You don't remember?" She asks,"He said that if Toriel didn't say anything, you'd be dead where you stand,"

"Well, I know, but-"

"You didn't think he meant that!?" She interrupts,"THAT'S RICH!"

'Since I had nothing better to do...I went back and challenged him.'

'All your friends, the people you loved. GONE!'

'I built the world, and then I destroyed it.'

'Time and time again I would do it.'

'Just to see if Sans would stop me.'

'He didn't, the oaf.'

'Not even for his poor brother, Papyrus.'

'But this time...I'll force him to watch everyone collapse, on by one!'

'With you and your friend out of the way, I can do anything! I'll become stronger than Asriel and destroy the entire timeline!'

'And Asriel, **it'll be fun watching you die twice**.'

My other self manages to land a hit on Asriel. He falls to the ground, his body facing downward flat on the floor. But, somehow, he is still hanging on. He isn't moving though, I guess he can't risk being struck again. I guess he's just THAT determined to keep going. So much so that, even if he dies, he won't let everyone else disappear. Maybe I can solve this without injuring Other Me...but...somehow, I have a feeling that sparing her won't solve this battle.

"You're not fighting..." She says,"Oh I get it! You...you actually think that MERCY is going to do anything!?"

She laughs the most maniacal laugh I've ever heard in my entire life. It was nerve-wracking. She composes herself and speeds up her attacks. I duck out of the way and the knife passes over my head. I shove her back and she staggers. Chara sees my opposite heading for me. They run forward and grab onto my other self, pulling her back and away from me. They wrestle the real knife from her hands and it falls uselessly to the floor. Chara nods to it and looks at me for a small bit. I glance at Asriel, the knife, and finally my other self, who's fighting to get away from him. I take my chance and pick up the Real Knife. Charging towards my other self, I close my eyes and give a large slash with it. When I finally open them, I see the SOUL of my other. The sheer amount of dust circling around it had blackened it completely. It shakes violently for a small bit before shattering. The deed was done.

Chara falls back onto the ground and sits, staring wide-eyed at me. They quickly get up and run towards Asriel, helping them to their feet. Asriel was, surprisingly, okay. Everything was fine now. I walk over to Chara and take off the heart-shaped locked I had and gave it to Chara. They take it for a bit and lean over to Asriel, opening it. I can see them both give a comforting smile before my vision is filled with white. I suddenly open my eyes to find myself lying down, safe, back in the UNDERGROUND.

It's finally over. Everyone's free.

* * *

 **This has GOT to be my favorite chapter to write. There's absolutely nothing that can make it better. Although, I probably shouldn't say such things. I'm probably lying to myself. The next chapter MIGHT be better than this, but let us see. I hope you guys enjoyed the little encounter between Anna and her Genocide self. Let's call her...Genna...(the G makes a J sound)...if you guys want to, anyway. Like always, (or from later chapters continuing on) be sure to review, favorite, or follow if you enjoyed this chapter! Until then!**


	19. Saying Goodbye

**This is the final chapter to this story. It is the closing point on the entire adventure. It's time to go back and meet the people we've loved so much throughout this entire adventure. I hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter. It's finally the end...**

 **Thank you for reading this text.**

* * *

"Oh! You are awake! Thank goodness!" Toriel says.

"W-we were so worried...!" says Alphys,"It felt like you were out forever!"

"Yeah! Any longer and I would have freaked out!" Undyne adds,"Tell us next time you decide to take a nap, okay!?"

"yeah. you made papyrus cry like a baby," Sans says.

"WHAT! I DIDN'T CRY! I DON'T CRY!" Papyrus yells,"I JUST...CAUGHT SOMETHING IN MY EYE,"

"what did you catch?"

"TEARS!"

"Now, now," Asgore says,"The important part is that Anna is alright. Here, Anna. Why not drink some tea? It'll make you feel better,"

He hands me a cup of tea and I take it from him, smiling. I blow the heat off of it a bit.

"How about we give them space, first?" Toriel suggests,"They must be very exhausted. Though, from what, I am not certain. Anna...we do not remember exactly what happened. There was a flower...and then, everything went white. But now the barrier is gone. When you are ready, we will all return to the surface. It seems the door to the east will lead us there now. But before then...perhaps you might want to take a walk? You can say goodbye to all of your wonderful friends. Do as you wish. We will all wait for you here,"

Say goodbye to everyone...yeah, I'll do that. I didn't notice Frisk was missing from the group until much later.

-88-

 **Goodbye, Hotland...**

I walked up to Burgerpants. He's still inside of this shop, doing I don't know what. He's packing his bags and is getting ready to head out towards the surface again. He hears me walk through the door and begins talking.

"Nice job, kid. We're free huh? Mettaton told us as much," He says,"Then he hold me, 'don't think that means you're getting out of work early. Ah...my boss. I love that guy. And by that I mean I hate him so, so much,"

Why did he say that last sentence with such a big smile? I think the constant work he does MIGHT be getting to him. But what do I know, I don't have the name "Burgerpants".

"So...how do you feel about us all being free?" I ask.

"Don't tell anyone about this, Little Buddy," He says,"But I...I feel like I played a hand in everyone getting free somehow. Even if it was just working this awful job. I think I did something! I don't know if it's true, but I'll believe it anyway!"

Funny thing is, he helped destroy the barrier. Of course, this is because Asriel used the power of his SOUL combined with all of the others...If that hadn't happened, Burgerpants would literally have done nothing this entire adventure. But I won't tell him that, look how big his smile is!

"See ya!" I say.

"Any time, little buddy,"

Walking outside of the hotel, I walk over into the alleyway. The two girls from before are still here and talking to each other. For how long they've been hiding out here, I have no idea.

"So, we're like, totally free now, huh?" Bratty says.

"Yeah, like, totally free,"

I hate it when people put "like" in every sentence...It's really just a filler word when you can't think of anything to say. If that's the case...when people are silent...do others just go "like, like, like, like,"? That'd be something to see, huh?

"Like...cool,"

"Yeah, like, cool,"

"Cool"? That's all? I was expecting more of a happy voice from them, but that's really all they have to say about their freedom...Huh. Oh well, you can't please everyone.

"Like, milennia of being imprisoned finally over?" Bratty says.

"Yeah, that's like pretty chill I guess," Catty finishes.

They really do not seem to be any happier about that. Oh well, none of my business anyway.

"Hmmm...Now that we're gonna be free..." Bratty thinks.

"OMG, we can finally fulfill our DREAM of having a pet cat!" Catty says.

AND THERE IT IS! That's the big smile I was looking for. Great job, Catty! Bravo!

"That's, like, YOUR dream, Catty," Bratty giggles.

"But Bratty...I don't wanna have a dream without YOU in it...!"

That's pretty nice of Catty to say something like that. Friends are great, you know?

"Aww...Catty..." Bratty says.

"And, in my dream, YOU clean up after the cat!"

Oh, son of a goat Catty!

"Catty!" Bratty laughs.

I have no idea why I'm asking this question.

"Do you like cats?" I ask the two of them.

"Me? Yeah, I LOVE cats!" The two of them say in unison.

"They're, like, SO tasty!" Bratty says.

"They're, like, SO cute!" Catty says.

Catty pauses for a second. Bratty is trying to hide a gigantic smile on her face. I'm just waiting for that moment where-

"Bratty NOOOO!" Catty yells.

"I'm just kidding!" Bratty says.

AAAAND THERE IT IS! I love these two. They were going back and forth on how dogs and cats are either not the same at all or just slightly different. I left them behind in the alley, not wanting to be dragged into the conversation.

Back in Hotland, I saw the Nice Cream Man again. He wasn't frowning like he usually was though. The guy actually looked pretty perky like he usually does when I walk up to him.

"I'm so excited to sell Nice Cream on the surface!" he says,"If all humans are like you, I think it'll be a modest success!"

Over to the Royal Guards...

"Undyne told us that the Royal Guard is being disbanded," 01 says,"Like, bummer...Guess we'll have to get used to Love and Peace,"

Guard 02 chuckles to himself when 01 says "Love and Peace". These two are pretty happy with each other. I hope that they stay together for a long while. They deserve it.

-88-

 **Goodbye, Waterfall...**

Over to ol' Gerson.

"Wah ha ha! I knew you could do it!" He says,"About your question earlier. Why exactly I call Dreemurr 'Fluffybuns'?"

That name! I still can't keep a straight face whenever I hear it.

'It was the monthly address at the castle, and the queen was giving her part on current events.'

'After finishing her update, she moved to pass the microphone to the king.'

However, she didn't realize the microphone was still in her hands when she said: "Your turn, Fluffybuns".'

'The audience burst into laughter.'

'Realizing what she had said, she started laughing too.'

'After a few moments, the king held up his arms. The crowd grew silent.'

'He leaned towards the microphone, expression...stern.'

'"Dear citizens, thank you for coming here today".'

'"I...King Fluffybuns..."'

"And the rest is history,"Gerson says.

Apparently, Gerson was also sort of relieved that Asgore and Toriel aren't together anymore. Apparently, from what Gerson said, they were "insufferable" together. It was mostly him and everyone else being tired of their constant affection for each other. Everyone's a critic. Also, apparently Undyne would follow Gerson around and "help" him fight bad guys. Although, I don't think the mailman is a bad guy...

"Gonna go and say goodbye to the others!" I say.

"Be careful out there, kid!"

Over towards Mettaton. He's still in his EX form. I'm assuming that Alphys made some adjustments to how the model functions.

"There you are, Anna-darling," he says.

Please don't call me "darling"...

"Feast your eyes! Dr. Alphys completed my wonderful new body,"

It looks exactly the same though...

"Oooh! And did you hear? The barrier's OPEN!"

I was THERE when it happened...

"I can't wait to see the sun...the greatest spotlight of all!"

You're luck you're a robot...that thing HURTS and it's blinding. Well, only if you stare at it. But who would- Oh right, Papyrus...But he's a skeleton. He'll be fine...I think.

"Oh yes. I suppose I should thank you, too, darling,"

This guy...

"Before fighting you, I had...forgotten how fun it was to perform with others. So I've been searching for HOT TALENTS to fill up my upcoming troupe," Mettaton explains,"So far, Shyren's agreed to be my back-up singer. and Bl...Napstablook, here, will be my sound mixer! The three of us performing together...it really feels overdue, doesn't it?"

I had actually never thought of that trio. Sounds like fun! I'll probably see some of their performances whenever I get the chance. Walking over to Napstablook, he looks towards Mettaton with awe.

"oh...mettaton...i'm a huge fan..." He says,"oh, hi. human...i'll never forget when you cheered me on when i was pretending to sleep. no one had ever had so much faith in my fake sleep. uh...also...this is awkward...but...what's your name? everyone seems to know it except for me...seems like i've been missing out lately,"

Apparently what happened is that the flash of light that appeared when Asriel took his true form didn't take Napstablook's soul. When Asriel had learned my name, that knowledge was spread to all the other monsters. So now, every monster knows who I am.

"anna...ok, i wont forget it,"

I walked over to Undyne's house and took a look at the Mad Dummy. He was still sitting there...and somehow the flames on Undyne's house didn't go out yet.

"So, you helped get us all free..."He says,"I guess I really acted like a dummy to you,"

HA! PUNS!

-88-

 **Goodbye, Snowdin...**

I walk around the area and see that the Amalgamates from the True Laboratory are now with their families. They all looked rather happy, although they were surprised how their relatives had turned out. Walking up to Doggo, his eyes widen and he waves at me, happily.

"What's up, Doggo?" I ask.

"Having an amorphous, shambling family member is great!" He says,"They're always moving, so I can see them 100-percent of the time!"

That's true. They're always moving, albeit very slowly. I walk over to Dogaressa, who's eyeing the Amalgamate in a strange sort of way.

"(All of our parents have been combined into one horrible being)" She says,"That's OK, though. It's really 'brought our families together',"

What is with all the puns today? Usually whenever SANS is around that happens...Over to Dogamy, he seems to be thinking very hard about something, as if he's conflicted.

"Hmmm, now that our parents are the same entity...does that mean I'm married to my sister?" He asks,"...Wait, we're dogs. That stuff's normal,"

Oooookkkaaaayyy and I'm outta here. I head into the library and look around at all of the people inside. I walk up to a small figure. He has one eye and two horns. No arms at all and he's in a sort of a circle shape.

"The greatest struggle of my life is over...I just solved today's crossword,"

Brilliant. I walk up to a brown-haired woman. She sat near the other side of the table, next to a sort of horse monster.

"This will be our newspaper's last issue..." she says,"Why don't we just put a big 'THE END' on the front and call it a day?"

Does everyone in this library cut corners to avoid doing work? I mean, I know that it's easier to do nothing than to do something, but c'mon already. It's a LIBRARY for goodness sake. Over to the horse monster.

"Oh my, there's so much news to report, I don't know where to begin!" she says,"How about this headline...'Monsters Go Free From The Underground.' Nah, that doesn't have enough pizazz. How about 'Top 10 Monsters You Won't Believe Got Freed From The Underground?'"

Either one sounds alright. Although, I prefer the first. You won't really need a top 10 since it's fairly obvious that everyone got freed. If anyone stuck behind, they must have something REALLY important that you won't find above ground. Although, The Underground is so unique that I wouldn't be surprised people would want to come here. I walk up to the librarian. It looks like some sort of hedgehog.

"Welcome to the library," He says,"This is the last day we'll be open, so make as much noise as you want,"

"WOOOOO!" The other three monsters yell.

I walk out of the library and head upwards. Coming towards the wolf I met a long while ago, he isn't throwing ice anymore. He actually looks rather relieved. I'd be relieved too.

"Ice Wolf no longer has to throw Ice," He says,"Ice Wolf can take a break to buy some pants now,"

I had actually never noticed...it's amazing what things you miss until someone goes and outright points it out. Back downwards in Snowdin, I head off towards the forest, talking to those I see. There was a tall orange monster with two horns and no arms. He had that same smile he wore when I was here last time.

"Finally free...finally...I'll be able to stop smiling," He says.

"Look like I don't have to worry about cracking jokes anymore," A mouse says,"...I was going to say a joke here, but I really don't have one,"

Walking inside Grillby's, I talk to a monster who had a large mouth. Inside were tons of large, sharp teeth.

"Soon, I'll be able to try some human food," He says,"And then I guess I'll try a human bathroom, too,"

Going to pretend I never heard that last sentence. I walk over to a bunny creature. She had her head on the table, her eyes in large swirls.

"I w-wonder if the o-overworld h-has h-hot guys..."she says,"A-and neat d-drinks...Ooooooo, I'm ready!"

There was another horse creature on the far end of the counter Grillby was at. He had blonde hair. gray fur, a black coat, and shades.

"Hey! People won't have to move in from the city anymore!" He says,"Seems like we won't have to lose our local culture...except we're all moving out of here, huh. Oh well. Guess it can't be all punk-peaches and punk-cream,"

Walking up to Grillby himself, he was cleaning another glass.

"...good job," He says.

Still quiet as ever I see. I turn to the duck towards the left of me.

"Wow, a brand new world..." She says,"I might not get to translate for Grillby anymore...which is fine, since I was actually just making up what he was saying,"

I walk towards the other monster that's right next to her.

"In the end, I never caught any girls on my fishing line," He says,"So kid, take it from me...Don't try to catch hot people with a fishing rod,"

Somewhere, I could hear a whinny of dismay. I look towards the horse on the other end of the counter. He stares at me for a small bit before looking away. I think that this man didn't really get the meaning of "pickup line". Oh well, I guess it's for the best. Over to Lesser Dog, it finally won that game of poker...against itself...Christ... I walk back outside and talk to the bear standing outside of Grillby's.

"Hey, Anna! I heard Dr. Alphys told the king and queen the awful things she'd done," the bear says,"The king felt so bad that he didn't know. He gave her a big hug. Then the queen fired her. Now we don't have a Royal Scientist anymore. Thaaaaat's politics!"

Sounds like Asgore and Toriel were just being themselves. I walk over to Monster Kid, whose name I realized was just "Kid".

"Yo! What's up!?" He says,"I've been kinda, doing some thinking...Maybe Undyne...isn't actually as cool as we thought. She's just kinda..mean. But YO! I just found out about someone WAYYY cooler! Nyeh heh heh!"

I laugh when I hear Monster Kid's imitation of Papyrus. It was oddly spot-on. Almost eerily so. I walk over to a blue bear, who I learned the name of. It was Brian.

"It'll be nice to show humans our presents-under-the-tree tradition. They'll probably we weirded out by it," He says.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm sure they'll be completely fine with it!" I reassure.

Christmas was a time for family and fun. The holiday season is about 5 months off though. It was July. I walk up to a bunny creature. They turn to me and speak.

"Oh, hi, Anna! That kid over there told me that it's weird that I have a pet bunny," She says,"First, there'd be nothing weird about it. It's cute! Second...What? It's normal to walk your younger brother on a leash, right?"

Wait...what in the- Nope, not even going to ask why. Just keep walking, Anna. Just keeep walking...I walk into the Inn. I see two bunnies. One was an older one and the other was a kid. The latter notices me and jumps up and down, happily.

"Oooh ooh! Mom! It's Anna!" They say.

"Haha...I know, June," She says,"Hello, Anna,"

"Mom says that we can go to the surface world now!" June says,"...what's so great about that, anyway? I don't wanna move,"

"I was worrying about you!" The bunny mother says,"Things are going to be OK, you hear? We're all going to the surface world soon...There's bound to be a place you can stay there!"

"You know, you just might be right about that,"

Dad, Charles...I'm finally going home. I walk over to the shop in Snowdin. There was another bunny that ran the place. She looks towards the entrance and smiles at me.

"Hi, Anna. Didja hear? The RUINS have been opened up, and get this...They were opened from the INSIDE. Apparently the Queen had been staying inside there for God knows how long," She says,"Pretty unbelievable, huh!?"

"Yeah...so...what are you going to do now?" I ask her,"We're all free,"

"Well, I suppose I'll move my store to the overworld," She says,"Haven't planned much more than that, I'm afraid,"

I walk through Snowdin Forest for a while. I finally come to the place where the snowman was. He sees me and smiles.

"Ah...I can feel that piece of me has been well taken care of," He says,"Hmmm...? The barrier's opened up? Hmmm...Then, if it's not too much to ask...could you take that piece of me to the surface? I would really appreciate it,"

And of course, me not being able to turn down a request like that, agrees to do so. I walk down farther into the forest. I come across the Snowdrake family, who are finally reunited with the mother of the family.

"The doctah. She brought my wife back from the dead," The dad says,"My son. He seems happy again. Our family. It's biggah then evah now that my wife is combined with 16 othah people,"

"Mom might have to share her mind with other people now, but she's still my mom," the Snowdrake child says,"And that's "cool! 'Cause, uhh, we're made of ice and stuff,"

I swore I could hear a rimshot somewhere. I just stare at him blankly. He starts to get a bit agitated.

"WHAT!? It's a JOKE! LAUGH at it!"

I just run off, trip for a bit, and run some more, not wanting to tell him that the joke wasn't that funny.

"I'LL GET YOU!" he yells.

-88-

 **Goodbye, Ruins...**

I walk back into the RUINS, walking through Toriel's home. I pass through the rooms with the changing perspectives and pass the rooms with the cracked parts in the floor. I reach the room with the three frogs.

"Ribbit ribbit. (Yellow names were nice for a while. Next time, we should try a relaxing shade of green)" One says.

"Ribbit ribbit. (Did you ever find this room's fourth frog?)" Another asks.

"Ribbit ribbit. (Say...now that your journey's over, maybe you'll have time to listen to me. Since most people just press [X] to skip through my dialogue. That's right...Pressing [X]...I suppose some things never change.)"

I was about to leave the room before something compelled me to go back. I turn around and checking every corner of the room. It wasn't until I found a whole that I found the forth frog. It waves at me and smiles. I smile back at it and head farther into the RUINS. I pass the place where I met Napstablook for the first time, and reach the safe spot that had a table with cheese on it. There was a nibble taken out of it, letting me know that the mouse had finally reached it. I reach the room with the three rocks and speak to the talking one.

"Hey, exit's open," I say.

"The exit's open? Guess I better roll out," It says,"Hey, y'mind giving me a push, pumpkin?"

I wanted to...but then I wouldn't be able to cross...maybe if I jumped over the water with it...I'll try that later. I pass the room that had cracked parts all over the floor, and reach another Froggit.

"Ribbit, ribbit. (Excuse me, human. You seem like you have grown into a thoughtful and conscientious person. Whether that was from my advice or not...I'm quite proud) Ribbit,"

I pass the long room with one pillar, and reach the room with spikes. It turns out that I can't get hurt from this puzzle at all. The spikes won't hurt me because they're too tall for me to be stuck on them. And the safe path just opens up whenever I walk through it. I pass the area where I entered the RUINS for the first time. As I walked back to where I fell down, the place where it all started, I see Asriel standing over a bed of golden flowers. Asriel turns to me and gives a bit of a shocked look. He was wearing the heart-shaped locket I went and gave to him. Frisk eventually comes into the room with Asriel and I. They wave at me and smile warmly.

"Don't worry about me," Asriel says,"Someone has to take care of these flowers,"

I didn't leave.

"Anna, please leave me alone,"he urges,"I can't come back. I just can't, OK?"

Still there.

"I don't want to break their hearts all over again,"he explains,"It's better if they never see me,"

Not going anywhere.

"...Why are you still here?" He asks,"Are you trying to keep me company? Anna...Hey, let me ask Frisk a question. I never got the chance to..."

Asriel turns to Frisk for a moment and stares into his eyes.

"Frisk...why did you come here?" He asks,"Everyone knows the legend, right...?"

'Travellers who climb Mount Ebott are said to disappear.'

'Frisk, why would you ever climb a mountain like that?'

'Was it foolishness? Was it fate? Or was it...because you...?'

"Well, only you know the answer, don't you?" Asriel finishes.

I look towards Frisk for a second and he thinks over Asriel's words. Of course, I knew why Frisk had came to this mountain, and it made me angry that he was treated that way during his lifetime...but...if it makes him feel any better, he can stay with me! I turn towards Asriel, who had something else to say.

"I know why Chara climbed the mountain," he says,"It wasn't for a very happy reason. Anna, I'll be honest with you. Chara hated humanity. Why they did, they never talked about it. But they felt very strongly about that,"

I didn't even move from where I was. Asriel smiles to himself and looks at me, looking JUST a bit happier.

"Anna, you really ARE different from Chara. The same goes to Frisk," he says,"In fact, though you have similar, uh, fashion choices...I don't know why at first I ever acted like you were the same person,"

Why at first...? Oh, right, RESETs.

"Maybe...the truth is...Chara wasn't really the greatest person. While, Anna, and you too, Frisk...you're the types of friends I wish I always had. So maybe I was kind of projecting a little bit. Let's be honest, I did some weird stuff as a flower."

I still never inched away from that spot. Asriel looks towards me one last time and speaks.

"There's one last thing I feel like I should tell you," He says.

'Anna, when Chara and I combined our SOULs together...the control over our body was actually split between us.'

'They were the one that picked up their own empty body.'

'And then, when we got to the village...They were the one that wanted to...to use our full power.'

'I was the one that resisted.'

'And then, because of me, we...'

'Well, that's why I ended up as a flower'

"Anna...this whole time, I've blamed myself for that decision. That's why I adopted that horrible view of the world. 'kill or be killed'. But now...after meeting you...Anna, I don't regret that decision anymore,"Asriel says,"I did the right thing. If I killed those humans...we would have had to wage war against all of humanity. And in the end, everyone went free, right? I still feel kind of sad knowing how long it took...so maybe it wasn't a perfect decision. But you can't regret hard choices your whole life, right? Well, not that I have much of a life left. But that's besides the point,"

He looks about the room for a small bit and looks up. I could see the light above as it pours into this dark place. Rubble breaks off from a rock and falls towards us. I was about to run before Asriel grabs my arm, keeping me there.

"It's fine, Anna," he says.

Sure enough, the rubble stopped moving. Time really IS screwed up. I had almost forgotten that the problems with the timelines were still in motion. After a few seconds, Asriel pulls me back and it hits the ground.

"Time is fixing itself slowly. Soon, things will all be back to normal. The RESETs only kept it from being fixed faster," he explains before realizing something.

"One FINAL thing. Anna...I think that you were meant to exist," he says,"I know that...technically you aren't...but I think you were! Who ever heard of time randomly creating a person? Maybe...you were going to exist a bit later in the timeline, but the RESETs just helped you appear faster. Well, luckily, you wound up here. And you have friends and a family that love you,"

He smiles at me warmly and gives me a hug.

"Anna, thank you for listening to me," He says,"You should really go be with your friends, now OK? Oh, and, please...In the future, if you uh, see me, don't think of it as me, OK? I just want you to remember me like this. Someone that was your friend for a little while. Oh, and Anna, be careful in the outside world, OK? Despite what everyone thinks, it's not as nice as it is here. There are a lot of Floweys out there. And not everything can be resolved by just being nice. Anna...don't kill, and don't be killed, alright? That's the best you can strive for. Well, see you,"

"Bye," I say,"C'mon, Frisk, let's get going,"

I walk out of the room, but Frisk stays behind. I look back at him, but he just motions for me to continue on without him. I comply.

-88-

 **Hello, Surface...**

I was back with everyone. We all trudge out past the barrier with everyone. We were finally in the overworld again. Those memories of being in the Underground were in the past. The gang and I stare out over the area in front of Mount Ebott.

"Oh my..."Toriel says.

"Isn't it beautiful, everyone," Asgore asks.

"Wow...it's e-even better than on TV,"Alphys says,"WAY better! Better than I ever imagined!"

"Anna, you LIVE with this!?" Undyne asks,"The sunlight is so nice...and the air is so fresh! I really feel alive!"

It WAS beautiful. This was a common sight for me, however. Dad and I would come out here and watch the sunrise. It was a breathtaking sight. The orange coloring filling the sky with its clouds. It had lost its meaning because I'd seen it so many times before. But, somehow, watching it with everyone here...makes it a lot more meaningful than anything else I had ever done in my entire life.

"HEY SANS...WHAT'S THAT GIANT BALL?" Papyrus asks.

"we call that 'the sun', my friend," Sans says.

"THAT'S THE SUN!? WOWIE!" Papyrus chirps,"I CAN'T BELIEVE I'M FINALLY MEETING THE SUN! HELLO SUN!"

Oh my God, Papyrus.

"I could stand here and watch this for hours..." Asgore says.

"Yes, it is beautiful, is it not?" Toriel says,"But we should really think about what comes next,"

"Oh, right,"Asgore remembers,"Everyone...this is the beginning of a bright new future. An era of peace between humans and monsters. Anna...I have something to ask of you. Will you act as our ambassador to the humans?"

"Sure, Asgore," I respond.

"YEAH! ANNA WILL BE THE BEST AMBASSADOR!" Papyrus assures,"AND I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS...WILL BE THE BEST MASCOT! I'LL GO MAKE A GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION!"

Papyrus goes and runs off towards who knows where.

"welp. someone's gotta keep him from getting into trouble," Sans says,"see you guys,"

Sans heads off...in the opposite direction from Papyrus. Undyne groans.

"Man, do I have to do EVERYTHING?" she says,"Papyrus, wait!"

She runs off after Papyrus.

"Hey, Undyne! Wait up!" Alphys says, chasing after Undyne.

"Whoops...uh...should I do something?" Asgore asks.

Toriel just gives him an unreadable look. I don't really know how to describe it.

"Well, gotta go!" he says, heading off.

"It seems that everyone is quite eager to set off,"Toriel says,"Anna...you came from this world, right...? So you must have a place to return to, do you not? What will you do now?"

I knew what I wanted to do. From the start, it was all set in my head.

"I have to go somewhere right now, but...I want you to gather everyone and head through the forest all at once. Stay on the path, okay?"

"Alright, my child,"

We hug for one last time and I run down through the forest. I run past the group I was with a while ago and head towards my house.

"Where's she going?" Undyne asks,"Hey! Anna! WAIT UP!"

-88-

 **Hello, Home...**

I reach my house and knock on the door, eagerly. It opens to reveal my Dad. His head was turned halfway. He had a sort of distressed look on his face.

"No, Charles, nobody has fo- Min lille pige!" He says.

I laugh at Dad's Danish speech. He'll do that when he's surprised or angry about something. Dad pulls me into a tight hug and Charles comes to see what's going on at the door. As he looks over Dad's shoulder his jaw drops as he sees that I'm okay.

"IT'S YOU!" He yells,"You're alright!"

"I thought we lost you," Dad says,"What happened?"

"I met people, that's what happened," I reply.

Dad gives a confused look before we hear voices from behind us.

"I think that's the place there," I hear Alphys say.

"HEY LOOK! ANNA HAS MORE HUMAN FRIENDS!" Papyrus says.

"uh, actually, i think that's her family, paps," Sans says.

"That is quite a big house, is it not?" Toriel asks.

"It IS large...and you say Anna lives there?" says Asgore.

The gang shows up and gets a look of the house I lived in. Dad pulls me close and looks at them with wide eyes. Charles just hides behind the both of us and peeks out.

"W- hvem er de?" Dad asks.

"Uh..."

"He's asking who they are, Anna," Charles explains.

"Those are my friends, Dad," I explain,"They helped me escape from the Underground,"

"Underground...you went to Mount Ebott!?" Dad asks, suddenly mad.

"W-well,"

"Please, do not blame Anna," Toriel defends,"She has helped us return to the surface again. She's a wonderful child,"

Dad looks at Toriel for a small bit and turns to me with tearful eyes. I break away from Dad and run up to my new friends. Turning to Dad, I speak.

"It's their first day on the surface in so long. They don't have much elsewhere to go,"

Dad looks among all of them for a bit. He steps out from the doorway and Charles follows, a bit worried.

"You...you helped my daughter, right?" Dad asks.

"S-she was amazing!" Alphys says,"The barrier is open and everything!"

Dad walks over to the group and starts asking Toriel about what exactly happened in the Underground. While this is going on, I walk over to Sans. There was something I had to ask him.

"Sans," I call.

"yeah, anna?" he answers.

"There's something I have to know,"

"ask away,"

"You know, the place where you gave me this fixed clarinet?"

I point towards the case I had almost forgotten was on my back.

"of course,"

"When you said "I'd be dead where I stand', how true was that?" I ask,"Were you only keeping me safe because of that promise?"

Sans stares at me for a second and looks towards the rising sun for a small bit.

"it was at first...but...then i got fond of you," Sans says,"if it wasn't obvious enough already...i...didn't want to imagine your death. you'd been around for so long, i just felt that it was my job to keep you safe. soon, that promise i made was at the back of my mind,"

It wasn't made clear that he cared that much about me until I had almost died for the first time at the end of Mettaton's quiz show. The guy was literally crying over me, when he could've just not cared in the slightest. Not only that, he was angry at my decision and recklessness. Sort of like Dad, really.

A while later, Dad had agreed to let them stay with us. We'd need a bigger house, so Undyne and Gerald set off to expand the house to accommodate the new people that were staying with us. Frisk eventually arrived with something in his hands. A flower pot. Within it, Flowey. The people see it and freeze for a slight second, probably remembering him. Frisk waves off all of the fear and assures us that it's okay. Everyone was a bit uneasy, but they got used to seeing the little guy. Flowey also seemed a lot more open and calm than before. I was wondering exactly WHY before seeing the heart shaped locket that was in the pot with Flowey. It was a reminder of who he, used to be, Asriel. As everyone gathers around in the living room of my home, I look about my family.

This was going to be a step forward for both humans and monsters.

Whatever we would deal with, we'd face it together.

No matter what happens, we'll stand by each others side.

 **Hello, Family...**

* * *

 **That's the final story to this chapter! I hope that it was satisfying enough for you guys! I was really upset this had to end, but I suppose it's for the best. I can focus on my other Fanfiction for Undertale now. I hope you guys enjoyed reading my longest story ever. If you enjoyed this story, be sure to review or favorite. Until then!**


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